A revenge so sweet yet so bitter
by Zerovk
Summary: I don't really care who she chooses for a partner as long as he is good enough for her . that is of course , after we ensure the purity of our line. However , for that person to simply be zero Kiryu .. It grates on my nerves . KxZ . ZxK . Zeka ( kaze )
1. Chapter 1

I stand by the window and watch as the dying sun dissolves bleeding and painting the horizon in a mixture of different colors .

It won't be long before nightfall .

I watch her retreating figure growing farther and farther away .

I watch the long strands of brown hair sway as she makes her way to him .

 _Yuki .._

As precious as she is , I don't love her in a romantic sense .

I have always felt guilty not returning her feelings until .. Until she came to me , hesitant and nervous , confessing her feelings for another .

I don't really care who she chooses for a partner as long as he is good enough for her . After we ensure the purity of our line , that is .

However , for that person to simply be Zero Kiryu .. It grates on my nerves .

 _Let the poor boy be ._ Something inside me chided Which I found rather surprising . After all , My sympathetic side rarely manifests . And when it does , I truly find it astounding . Lost in thought , I took a moment to digest all of the conflicting emotions and swirling rage , letting out the softest of sighs as I allowed my eyes a moment of serenity and darkness , only to have them open again though welcoming an all too similar canvas . Night .. and Dark ..

Briskly , I let the velvet curtain slip through my fingers and walked towards the study table .

The darkness caressed every inch of the room with such abrupt intensity I felt it would consume and swallow me up , had I not been the king of darkness itself . Swiftly , I turned my gaze towards the chess board resting atop the said table , contemplating my next move .

I could almost hear a slow symphony reverberating about the darkness , gaining volume and vigor with each passing second .

And then all of a sudden , It hit crescendo making me shiver despite myself .

I opened my eyes wondering when had I even closed them .

After a moment or so , my fingers gently glided over the chess pieces almost as if touching a child , contradicting the brewing storm I felt inside . And It's then that I decided .

I did not just spend all of those years waiting to end up alone .

No . No , zero kiryu , I won't let you have what's rightfully mine regardless of everything else .

 **. . . . . . . . . . . .vk**

As she sauntered her way to zero's room , Yuki couldn't help but think .

She had always thought of kaname as her savior , her crush .

However ..

Her steps came to a halt at that point .

Ever since she awakened , a lot has changed .

The man she spent all those years thinking of as her savior , blushing when she met , was in fact her brother all along .

she was a VAMPIRE for heaven's !

And .. And zero a vampire hunter .

Why did everything have to be so complicated ?!

She was this close to screaming but knew better .

Sometimes she felt like curling into a ball , crying her eyes out as she shook her head at how it had all escalated .

It felt sad somehow . She could tell that kaname's feelings for her did not and will not surpass brotherly love . And that .. Kind of hurt .

 _It shouldn't matter ._ she kept telling herself .

It shouldn't , especially when she herself couldn't exactly put a name to her own feelings towards him anymore .

But .. Truth is .. It did matter . And her own conflicted emotions hardly made it hurt any less .

She then resumed her walk , her pace slower that time only to have her steps come to a halt again . She lifted her head , sighing when she noticed how close she was to a certain silverette's room .

Awhile ago, she confessed to kaname saying she might have possibly harbored some feelings towards her adoptive brother . Even though deep inside , she wasn't quite sure anymore . Whatever she felt towards either of them was no longer clear . Was it love ? or friendship ? or a family bond ? was it adoration she felt towards Kaname ? just that ? or something more ? Could she really admit it to herself now that she knows everything ? could she really love her brother like that ? yea that was no big deal in the vampires' world but .. She spent her whole life living as a human and human girls don't love their brothers .. At least you don't hear it every day that two siblings love each other .

on the other hand , Zero .. Zero had a very special place in her heart.. she always felt like holding him close keeping him safe and giving him all the love he deserved but never had a chance to feel .. Was that love ? or just her thinking of him as the brother she never had ?

Whatever it was , She could tell - the same way she could tell that kaname's feelings did not surpass brotherly love - that zero's case won't be too different .

But that didn't stop her from blurting out such confession . Before she knew it , she was already sneaking inside her adoptive brother's room . the brunette quickly scanned the room searching for a familiar mop of silver hair . She already had a feeling he would be asleep and true enough , Zero's even breathing and heart rate confirmed her assumptions .

She sat on the floor appreciating how the moonlight glowed beautifully framing most of the hunter's face .

 _He looks like an angel ._

she thought to herself , Smiling softly . But then another thought hit her .

 _However , no one here is . We are all guilty ._

Narrowing her chocolate brown eyes , Yuki stared off into the distance almost as if hypnotized or even possessed . She could only speak for herself and she knew .. she was no longer the innocent human girl she once was ..

This is bound to give me a headache . the pureblood princess thought ruefully .

True enough , almost instantly , she groaned , already feeling a headache gnawing at her nerves . It's then that she decided to take her leave . After all , If zero were to wake up and find her in that situation , things would get - in the least of terms - awkward .

 **. . . . . . . . . . . .vk**

Lilac eyes snapped open . Zero woke up sensing a vampire nearby . And not just any vampire .

 _Her ._

She must have tried her best to conceal her presence and scent which explains why it took him some time to wake up and notice despite her lingering scent . He found himself smiling softly and shaking his head as he thought of her .

To think that he did - at some point - believe he was in love with her .

It took him too long to realize he might have confused himself interpreting his feelings all those years .

After all , what does he know about actual love ?

It only makes sense he got attached to her seeing as how she happened to be the first pure human contact he got to interact with after that incident . _And now she is .. gone ._ he told himself .

He liked to make things easier for himself and thinking of her as an enemy would save him a lot of troubles , confusion and confrontations .

He then stopped to think of his own life so far .

Sometimes he felt like the only thing stopping him from committing suicide is the fact he liked to think of himself as stronger than that .. Which was - in all verity - quite pathetic .

He needed a trigger , a purpose , perhaps something impossible . Yea . the more impossible it is , the more it would fuel him to go on .

And not for the first time . he thinks of giving something a try .

With determined eyes , he gazed at his own wrist , his veins to be exact .

In my veins dance both of your bloods .

Power .

Power I suppressed .

I think it's finally time I make use of it .

 **. . . . . . . . . . . .vk**

 **A/N**

This is my first time writing here and kxz at that .

After spending a lot of time obsessing over that couple , I finally decided to give writing them a try ~

I can safely say this is a short fic and since I do write for other fandom on other site , I would like you all to know that I will update when I have time that's why I won't make promises about fast updates .


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer : I do not own vampire knight in any way , shape or form .However , I do own the plot of this fic in a sense that the events which did not happen in the actual manga / anime are purely mine . Some actions that took place in the original VK may be twisted to aid the story's demands ~**

 **Trigger warning : hm none so far . I can safely say that my writing ain't too graphic to need a warning . However , if general mentions of blood , gore , sexual scenes require a warning then yea , this ain't a fluffy fic after all .**

 **Random announcement : I just recently got my AO3 invitation and posted some of my fics there ( mostly my kpop ones ) You're free to check them out if you 're into kpop especially Teen top . My username there is Chunjixbyungie or zerovk ( for my vampire knight fic )**

* * *

A certain silverette leaned on the headboard of his bed , absently brushing his fingers through his hair .

Ever since yuki unexpectedly paid him a visit , sleep never graced him with its appearance .

An unpleasant memory flashed before Zero's eyes as he thought of the said vampire princess .

" _The only reason you are able to protect yuki is because of my blood coursing through your veins . I know you always thought it was you . But really , it has always been me protecting her . "_

" Bastard . " The hunter scowled and repeated his words from back then with a fair amount of contempt .

The silverette hated those words , they made his blood boil to a point of no return because of the obvious fact they were bound to get on anyone's nerves ..And well , because to - some extent - , they were true . If it weren't for that venom kuran calls blood , Zero would have long bid farewell to his sanity , having been reduced to a crazed monster that could only think of one thing , bloodthirst . While Kuran's powerful carmine had slowed down the descent to madness , it brought with it more harm than good . If Zero knew he would constantly be reminded of the fact it was only thanks to a pureblood's help that he was able to protect one of the people he cared for , he would have never agreed to that .. Would have fought the thirst ..But the bastard had to play with that card , fishing in dirty water , using yuki along with zero's need of blood to force the hunter on it .

" Maybe kuran was right .. " the hunter choked out as he felt an overwhelming weight on his shoulders .. What was it ? Regret ? Grief ? … He wasn't sure but it certainly wasn't anything good .

Whatever he was feeling at that moment pulled at his heartstrings and tormented soul .. Slowly sucking his sanity out of him until there was left nothing but an empty shell . Everything spiraled together in a way that only worked to further agitate his dark thoughts feeding his soul with lies that he couldn't tolerate . A tangling mess .

Sighing softly , he resumed speaking to himself , eyes devoid of emotion and mind wandering in a haze

" Maybe I hated hearing those words because I didn't want to believe them . I didn't want to admit it .. "

I couldn't protect yuki .. I couldn't protect my family .. My parents .. Ichiru .. I .. I'm Helpless ..

" Shit ! " Slamming a hand on his face , Zero cursed as he bit down on his lips , hard , drawing blood in the process .

The metallic scent wafted in the room awakening senses he wished he never had .. He squeezed his eyes shut despising the fact they were - without doubt - glowing an intense red .

As if he needed a reminder of the worst feeling ever - thirst - .. Of blood .. _**His**_ blood .

He truly loathed that existence , with a passion stronger than that towards even Shizuka herself . Because in her case , he could at least blame everything on the fact she was called the mad blooming princess ..

However , Kuran .. Kuran , without an ounce of remorse or hesitation for that matter , had assigned Zero to a role the hunter never even asked for , to nurture every single step in his own scheme , a pawn to protect his beloved sister and rid him of the bane of his existence , namely , Rido !

If there was one thing Zero despised then it was getting used and not having a choice of his own . And the fact he was being played like a pawn for a fucking pureblood at that , did not help .

Hate doesn't even begin to capture what he truly felt whenever a certain brown haired pureblood crossed his mind .

He hated the fact he was playing in kuran's hands , aiding those schemes instead of obliterating them . Because he had no other choice .. It was either do or wreak havoc on anyone close to him .. You might say he could have ended it all .. But he couldn't .. Every Time he thought of killing himself , yuki's face would appear before his eyes shocking him back to his senses imprisoning him in that wretched life .

However , living and surviving came with a price .. A very tragic one . Much the same as everything else in his life so far ..

At first , Zero's hate towards vampires and purebloods in particular was generalized . It was only natural to feel that way after all .

His parents' death by the hands of Shizuka Hio had been the first spark that ignited his hatred , killed his innocence and forced his childhood into a sudden halt , tore him apart from his family , robbed him of his twin . At that time , he was convinced no one would ever take Shizuka's place in his heart , a very special one born and raised in darkness .

. Eventually though , he found himself despising everything about kuran , for being a pureblood vampire , the most manipulative of which , rousing Zero's vengeful spirit . Moreover , his odd fascination towards yuki had Zero perplexed beyond belief and that soon fueled the enmity between them .

But it was obviously not just about yuki , at least not completely . Kuran never spared a moment to antagonize the silverette about the fact he couldn't control his thirst or how he was actually the true beast amongst them seeing as how he failed to put a leash on his vampire side . The hunter could swear kuran must have felt pure joy doing such thing , shoving it in his face that he was no better . Blaming him for biting yuki ..

As if he needed that .. Back then , Zero had felt the tendrils of guilt swirl around his whole being threatening to suffocate him to death in a manner that ironically reminded him of the vines of his own gun - .

The sight of yuki , all knocked out and lying vulnerably in kuran's embrace .. Having been drained by him … It was like a punch in the gut followed by a knife getting shoved straight into his abdomen , bones breaking and arms twisting … All combined .. frozen and too guilty to be talking , Zero stood in total shock as he watched Kuran glare at him , eyes red and foreboding , accusing , promising a fate worse than death .. The look you would give someone who dared to bring harm to one of your family members .

That look.. He should have been the one giving it to kuran .. He should have controlled his thirst , should have protected yuki and his own humanity…

frowning deeply , the silver haired hunter rubbed his face in a worn out manner as he felt an impending headache make itself known .

It was getting to a point where those memories started to physically pain him . However , he needed a closure . He needed to sort things out , at least with himself .

In short , he couldn't and most definitely would never be able to stress just how much he hated every single thing about kuran . To make it worse , that fucker just had to ruin everything , take away the only light in Zero's life for good , when he turned yuki .. But he didn't exactly turn her .. right ?

He just.. reawakened her ..His sister .. A kuran pureblood princess ..

That was by far the greatest shock ever in Zero's life . Though maybe it shouldn't have affected him that much . After all , his life was mainly comprised of that .. A shocking twist after the other .. What could be waiting , he had no idea and planned to keep it that way for quite some time .

He was in no way ready for the next blow .

He needed that time to recuperate . However , something inside him knew that things wouldn't go the way he liked . As long as purebloods existed , especially the insufferable Kuran kaname , the likes of zero would continue to live in misery .

That bloodsucker is nothing but a freaking sadistic creature that enjoys antagonizing others because he can't stand the idea of suffering alone . Though I myself highly doubt that brat is even capable of suffering . But that negates my previous statement .. Kuran and suffering though .. Those words can never cross paths . Sins yea .. But suffering ? No .

A swirling mass of darkness seemed to encompass the atmosphere as a certain hunter once again surrendered to the ever growing abyss that took over his mind most of the time ..

 ** _suicidal thoughts ._**

Thinking of that did not signify weakness and Zero would personally take immense pleasure in shooting anyone who dares say otherwise . He was not weak .. It's not that he couldn't stand some pain . No . A lifetime worth of agony cannot just be called 'some pain' . So yes .. It shouldn't be deemed as a sign of weakness .. Because he'd reached his limit and it was only natural to break down after having endured so much pain , loss and hardships . Besides , what if it was weakness ? What was so bad about having a weakness ? Even vampires , with their immortal bullshit and all , have weaknesses . So why can't he ? No one is perfect or invincible . Honestly , he'd reached a point where he became too indifferent to care about people and what they might think . Not that he used to care about that any ways .

 _But well .. Whatever .._

With a deep and rather prolonged sigh , the silver haired hunter dropped his head back on the pillow attempting to relax .

Going back to Sleep seemed like a perfect thing to do at that moment , considering how thoroughly exhausted he was feeling because of thinking too much .

 **...….VK**

Somewhere else , in the moon dormitory , Kaname relaxed in his seat , enjoying a rare moment of serenity , or at least a semblance of it outwardly . Inside though , his mind was whirling with different emotions , thoughts and plans .

At first , Rido Kuran awakened him , a pureblood ancestor , and consequently forged a bond between them , becoming his 'master ' and thus ensuring Kaname would never be able to kill him .

Replacing the newborn kaname kuran was all part of Rido's plan , thinking he could outsmart an ancestor . _How stupid !_ Kaname let him believe that though and eventually grew up , as Yuki's brother .

He did not plan to get attached to her or anyone for that matter .. But somewhere down the line , after her soothing voice and gentle touch had reached through his heart in a way that reminded him of **h** **e** **r** , he found immense comfort in the kuran princess . He truly did care for Yuki even though he was not her actual brother and despite his intentions of letting no one inside his heart .

Yuki , oblivious to the fact kaname was not her actual brother , had always taken it upon her shoulder to look after him , treating him like he was the younger one , as if he was as fragile and delicate as a rose that needed a gentle touch , care and love . Even now he could hear her speaking to him in a soft tone , telling him it was gonna be okay as she took him in her embrace and patted his head like a mother would do her child after having a nightmare .

He could still feel her touch , those small limbs as they curled around him , that warmth , that love .. that pureness .. as opposed to kaname's world of darkness . The blank expression he had on whenever she did that signified his confusion . He couldn't understand how anyone would want to comfort him .. Hell he couldn't wrap his mind around the fact he , an ancestor , was letting a young girl treat him like that . And the strangest of all is the fact he later realized that he did need it .. while yuki saw it as reassuring her brother who'd been having nightmares , kaname himself was battling against his own past , blaming himself for everything whether he deserved it or not .

Even though reawakened as a child , kaname still possessed his mature side , his mentality was that of a vampire that lived for thousands of years , an ancestor . No one would ever be able to understand that and no words could ever fit to describe what he went through as a child when he was far from that .

Bit by bit , ruby colored eyes gazed downwards , eventually closing . Kaname heaved a deep sigh as he recalled those times , a serene expression planted on his face as he swirled the pen between his delicate fingers . And oddly enough , even the small action had a lot to offer , exuding a wave of control , confidence and dominance .

After quite some time , kaname opened his eyes again , gazing upwards as he resumed his brief yet eventful visit down the memory lane .

He'd forgotten to mention two of the most important people in his life though .

Yuki's parents , Juuri and Haruka treated him as their son even though they knew the truth and in a way , he felt like the least he could do to repay their kindness was become just that - for real - their son .

Soon , The kuran became his loving family that he vowed to protect with all his might . However and as if on purpose , Fate chose to shatter that vow on a certain bleaky night when Rido emerged , planning to take a certain princess away . It's true that he failed to take Yuki back then but it came with a price .. he had succeeded in killing Haruka and revealed that , despite Kaname's strong desire to kill him , he would not be able to because of the bond .

It was some time later that Juuri sacrificed herself to protect Yuki from Rido , by sealing her vampire side and erasing her memories . Juuri's dying wish was for kaname to look after her daughter . And he did just that - leaving the little girl in Kaein cross' care –

Deep inside though , he wanted to look after the girl from afar which demanded he attends Cross academy . he'd also be Following haruka and Juri's example by doing that which further encouraged him to do so . However , he did not expect that a filthy level E would randomly threaten his yuki's life on one snowy night and thus forcing him to take action and save her . Though thinking back , he was kind of grateful . Even the most critical and bizarre of situations could turn out to be highly beneficial . After that night , the ' human ' Yuki started to view him as her savior and whatnot , got chronically attached to him in a way that both pleased and hurt him immensely ..

As time passed , Kaname spent years not knowing how to take Rido down until his eyes landed on the kiryuu twins . A sinfully dark and extremely immoral plan formulated in his brain right after that day / night . He knew it would take a painfully long time and perfect accuracy to make sure his plan came to fruition and that he didn't mind . After all , he was no stranger to waiting and could easily manipulate any situation to his liking .

Now everything has fallen into place . It's been awhile since the day he had been waiting for his whole life finally came - reawakening yuki - yet something still seemed to be missing , if the persistent feeling gnawing deep inside his very soul was any indication .

And he'd a faint idea what that was . The girl he'd spent his whole life trying to protect .. just slipped through his fingers like thin air . Even though he'd already established the fact he in no way felt romantically towards Yuki , he couldn't stand the idea of having her attention sway somewhere else , especially not towards his own pawn . _Bizarre ._

Kaname loathed to admit it but .. His lofty arrogance refused to come in the second place even if it was a position that held no interest to him .

It was downright selfish of him , he knew . Gruesome , even . _Sinful ._

 _However , wasn't the core of his very existence ?_

 _He'd already sinned too many times to the point of losing count . He'd gotten himself entangled in a world of sin . If one would be honest , it was a little too late to start doing the right thing ._

 _Which was now crystal clear , But he couldn't bring himself to do it . He couldn't let her go ._

 **..…..VK**

A certain caramel haired vampire stood by the gates of the night class dormitory , gracefully leaning on the closest tree as she waited for a certain princess to start acting like one and show up soon .

It goes without saying that Ruka dislikes Yuki for many reasons .

First , it was because of the attention kaname had showered yuki with despite her being a human . Secondly , because of yuki turning out to be kaname's sister , Ruka found herself obliged to respect that girl she used to ponder every day and night on why kaname cared so much for . But deep inside she had no genuine respect or loyalty towards the pureblood princess . She still secretly viewed the girl as less than the rest of the night class , always reckless and acting nowhere near a pureblood . To the point she wished she could remind her she was a pureblood and thus was expected to act accordingly.

Seething inside , the usually nonchalant vampire clenched her fists as she picked up on a familiar presence nearby , the one she'd been waiting for .

As free spirited as ever , yuki's figure emerged , approaching the other female , a deceptively innocent expression creeping up to her face . which somehow managed to rile Ruka up even more , if that was possible . Footsteps fell on dry leaves causing a crunch to resonate about the area , the sound reverbrating about ringing in both of their hyper sensitive ears .

Slowly pushing her body off the tree , the caramel haired vampire politely nodded , a silent form of greeting . Something she'd rather not do if the choice was hers . But it wasn't . Yuki was not just the human Yuki cross . She was a kuran , a pureblood princess , her position higher than Ruka herself . _The realization left a bitter aftertaste_. As if that girl needed more power when she was already granted the one thing Ruka wished every night and day for , Lord kaname's undivided attention .

The two females held eyes , portraying a great deal of their mutual dislike , for the lack of a better word .

Their encounter soon turned into the most heated silent or not so silent argument .

It was one of the times when Ruka was reminding Yuki of her pureblood status. But then the said pureblood did something unexpected .

Yuki , as surprising as it might be , still preserved some of the sweetness she had as a human though now it was coupled with a malicious side to it consequently shaping her character into a very unique blend of the two .

Swiftly , she leaned closer whispering in her dark and twisted yet soft voice " Dear Ruka , you should know that my existence is not what makes my brother out of your reach . "

* * *

 **A/N :**

 **Yay ! I can't believe I'm about to post this !**

 **I know it is short but I just really wanted to update and gain ideas from any review I may get .**

 **There might have been a lot of room for improvement in this chapter ( more details ) but once again , I just really wanted to update ~**

 **I hope you guys enjoyed this ~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer : I do not own vampire knight in any way possible .**

 **Warning : I just realized I should have warned you guys that this fic contains a lot of spoilers for those who didn't read the manga or completed the anime .**

 **Ever wondered how Kaname would look like in real life ?**

 **I have a little surprise for you guys ~**

 **Check this out**

watch?v=mkbLy1ANB-8

 **.Vk**

Ruka's eyes twitched as she processed those words rolling off the pureblood's tongue with an edge of pity . something that didn't sit well with the caramel haired noble at all . The idea of it alone shredded at her nerves . She didn't appreciate the way Yuki said those words with an air of wisdom like she knew all that was there to know when in fact , that was far from true . No one .. No one knew what it felt like to be in love with Lord kaname and constantly be denied the pleasure of having such feelings returned . No one .

No one knew the pain , the agony , the desperation ..

It was few seconds later that Yuki pulled away , her chocolate brown eyes randomly darting upwards , settling on a certain window when she noticed a familiar male with fiery amber hair - the color of sunset - .

A knowing smile instantly made its way to her small face as she exchanged a brief look with Akatsuki Kain .

But the noble didn't seem to like the way such smile looked utterly patronizing . He was this close to stepping away when she noticed him staring down as if stalking the whole scene but knew better . After all , he did nothing wrong nor was he actually intending to witness that exchange . So he stayed still , merely observing how the girl they all deemed to be the epitome of naivety now seemed to be the one privy to each and every single secret of theirs and they - on the other hand - could no longer read her unlike the past . Put simply , The tables were turned ..Drastically .

Who knew ? Who knew such escalation of events would take place ?

But maybe it shouldn't have come as a surprise . After all , Lord Kaname's odd fascination towards the girl in question was a little too suspicious .. Her features .. Her features should have alerted them .. The resemblance .. How could they have not noticed it ? Especially since they did , on more than one occasion , witness both of the kuran siblings together up close ..

His thoughts were forced into a halt though as he once again met those sienna colored orbs . The pureblood princess sent him another knowing look then proceeded with the matter at hand , namely , Ruka Souen .

Kain frowned at that , his fingers unconsciously tightening on the velvet curtains as he did so .

Yuki , She seemed to know far too much about things of deep importance to them which was unsettling if he was gonna be honest . And that's especially why he found himself grateful that even his hyper sensitive vampire ears failed to catch whatever the not so innocent pureblood princess just whispered into Ruka's ears .

Speaking of which , the female noble , despite catching the way those deceptively innocent eyes of Yuki gazed upwards , did nothing to figure out who exactly seemed to draw the pureblood princess' attention .

However , it's not like such thing was necessary . for Yuki's next words did a pretty good job giving the female noble a hint or well , a dead giveaway .

" I wonder when , or better said , if you'll ever realize that you have been searching for love in the wrong place all along and in doing so , you'll end up losing the very one person who truly loves you with all of his heart ."

Yuki eloquently pointed out , a part of her truly wishing for the noble to stop waiting for something she would never have , ( something as far fetched as Kaname's heart . )

However , another part of her seemed to take pleasure in finally being able to stand up for herself , to be taken seriously and to be feared , whether such thing showed or not . She knew just how intimidating she'd become . How influential !

The two females spent few silent moments staring at each other as if not holding eye-contact meant losing , the sheer honesty decorating the air at such moment came as a shock to both of which . They may have disliked each other , still . Those words were not just meant to provoke or antagonize .. They held a very sincere advice . An advice coming from someone who knew so much about a certain brown haired pureblood . Someone who has been there .. And still is , caught in the midst of a raging confusion .

the noble in question felt her heart skip a beat at that . But she kept her poker face on , refusing to let someone as clueless as Yuki cross lecture her about love . Yes , Yuki cross . She'd forever be that in her eyes . Nonetheless , somewhere in the back of her mind , insecurities reared its ugly head , having been awakened by the other female's words .

Could it be ? Even if Yuki was not present , would lord Kaname still be out of Ruka's reach ? But .. he did prefer her blood , right ? Or .. Was she deluding herself into it ? Was it the ache inside her , urging and craving to complete the bond ?

Furthermore , she knew .. who those words referred to ..

It was not a matter of knowing or not .. She was not blind to her cousin's affection . However , she didn't have a choice . Her heart yearned for the one thing she couldn't have , the one person out of her reach .

The sound of footsteps echoing about snapped the noble out of her thoughts and before she knew it , the pureblood was already making her way inside the building .

" And whether I decide to spend the night in the day class dormitory or here does not concern you , Ruka . " Yuki warned as she pushed past the other female , her voice calm and gentle , contradicting the weight those words held .

From above , Kain continued to watch , eyes narrowing in conflicted emotions as he gazed down at the one girl that stole his heart and mind , wondering when exactly his feelings started to change or well , falter .. Much the same like the light of a candle flickering every once in awhile until there was left nothing but the ashes of what was once about ..

Whatever passion that once burned inside of him towards her truly ended up consuming him , just like a fire would , eating everything in its way .

Sighing in a rather dismissive manner , the fiery haired noble pulled away and turned around facing the other occupants of the room who didn't seem to notice anything , much to his relief , including his inner turmoil . His cousin , Hanabusa was lying on a couch , engrossed in a book he was reading whilst Takuma silently sat on the other one with a sleeping Senri lying on his lap . Rima was in her room , Akatsuki guessed , probably brushing her silky pastel ginger hair or trying on different outfits .

It might seem like nothing much has changed when in fact , a lot has . Actually , everything has changed . Even Hanabusa's craze seemed to have toned down , the lord - kaname - worshiping -era . Of course , that was not to say they were no longer recognizable . No . However , they have all went through a drastic change that lingered after a certain silver haired hunter defeated Rido . From then on-wards , everything went down hill .

 **.Vk**

After quite some time , a blonde noble with emerald eyes excused himself and proceeded gently moving the mahogany haired male on his lap so as not to disturb his sleep .

Takuma strolled down the hallway of the moon dorm carrying the still sleeping Shiki towards his room as he contemplated a certain issue .

Despite how much it seemed otherwise , Senri was the most one affected by the .. the catastrophic events that took place . He and Rima have spent a good portion of time away , disappearing for a while but eventually came back , different and even more mysterious .

Sighing in exasperation , the blonde noble reached with his shaky fingers , the cold tips coming in contact with his forehead as he gazed down the male on bed , slumbering like a marionette meant for an aesthetic show .

 **.Vk**

Steady and relaxed footsteps echoed about the hallway , approaching a certain room .

Takuma stopped as he reached his destination , his eyes landing on the door he used to knock out of manners even though he was the closest to the owner of such room .

Sometimes , however , he didn't bother knocking because of how familiar they were . Now though he fought the itch to slam the door open and waltz inside - not because of familiarity but due to losing respect for the pureblood inside - .

After a moment of calming himself down , he managed a swift knock and waited . He knew his presence must have already been sensed any ways . And that there was no going back . _He had to do this ._

After a minute or so , he was finally granted permission inside .

The first thing Takuma noticed as he entered was how pitch black the room was , it seemed to be drowning in an ocean of darkness and while it was true that vampires had very sharp eyesight , Kaname 's room never looked so dark before . And that was not all .

Takuma inched closer to the study table where he could faintly make out the pureblood's silhouette . If it wasn't for the fact he knew for sure and felt the other's presence there , he would have thought that he was alone in the room . Though not entirely .. The gust of wind whispered promises of misery , The curtains fluttered and billowed ever so softly , allowing pearly streaks of moonlight to sneak inside and highlight the pureblood's ethereal features .

Emerald met garnet and a silent inquiry hung in the air .

With a blink , Kaname seemed to ask about the reason behind such visit . He , after all , did not summon the noble which meant one thing .

The pureblood only watched as Takuma's eyes slowly landed on the wooden board , the knight , queen and king .

 _He is up to something again ,_ The noble concluded .

 _Most definitely no good ._

His stomach coiled at the thought of it alone .

But that did not signify terror . After all , he did not fear kaname in that way and wouldn't start now . The kind of fear he felt squeezing at his insides was not the instinctive one that naturally came with being a lesser vampire .

At least , he liked to believe that . He was different after all , right ? He was Takuma Ichijou , Kuran kaname's childhood friend . He gave a new meaning to loyalty .. the person kaname confides in the most . Right ? If that didn't give him privileges then what would ?

Though maybe his whole conceptions of loyalty , friendship or companionship weren't too accurate .. They have been viciously destroyed the moment he found himself betrayed by the one person he himself would have risked everything including his life to protect .

Though maybe he should . or maybe he did . Maybe behind those carefully crafted smiles , existed a fear so discreet it shied away from the light , kept in hiding , skillfully concealing itself from even himself . It wouldn't be surprising after all . No matter how close one might get to them , purebloods are to be feared .

.. Maybe deep inside , he truly did fear the pureblood but never had a chance to feel or show it . simply because there was no reason to . He'd seen kaname in his worst , had seen him rage and break down and during all of those times he was never at the receiving end of Kaname's wrath .

But that has changed ..

Ever since that ..tragedy .. He found himself fearing the man in front him in a sense profoundly sentimental . He feared .. Who the next victim might be .

He feared the aftermath , the shock , disappointment and feeling of betrayal hanging over his shoulders like dead-weight denying him escape , restraining his movements , enslaving him to a world of darkness too deep he would have no chance of ever making it to the shore again .

He feared losing a friend that at some point , meant so much to him he never saw that coming . Though maybe they were way past that stage .. Yea .. Maybe he'd already lost two of the most important people in his life and at the same time no less .

Kaname , already knowing that the blonde would not be able to initiate the conversation despite being the one to seek it , wondered out loud asking Takuma what he would have done if things were reversed ..

If Sara had succeeded in killing him .

He was using reverse psychology but Takuma knew kaname wasn't saying that to show vulnerability , nor was it an attempt at lacing together threads of guilt around the noble's throat ..

Not even an excuse for his deeds . After all , it was in his power to avoid her killing him if he so wished , without having to kill her in return .

And Takuma would have preferred that , genuinely believing there could be some way to it without anyone getting killed . But kaname was not Takuma .

He knew what he'd done .

Some people might call it a killing spree , a purge of sorts .

When in fact it was the one thing he spent his whole painful life , striving to achieve . Besides , He was convinced - to a great extent - that Takuma didn't actually have any sort of affection towards Sara , at least not genuine .

And if he had then well .. he was just going to have to live with it .

Now they had one more thing in common - having to endure the loss of a special one and knowing there was nothing they could do about it - .

Actually and thinking back , Some twisted part of him all but sighed in satisfaction as he realized something .

Now finally , someone knew exactly what it feels like ..

Was it too much he couldn't help but drag someone else with him ?

Someone special , someone loyal - The closest to a friend - .

 _And who better to share pain with than a friend ?_

But that would mean he was no better than Rido , right ?

No .. He was different . He didn't kill Sara to torment Takuma or anyone for that matter .

As minutes dragged by , Takuma cleared his throat and blurted out , depite knowing that the pureblood's question was a rhetorical one .

Reversed or not , Takuma couldn't care less . The final outcome was too harsh . He couldn't imagine what would have happened if it was Kaname getting killed but he knew one thing for sure .

" Well , they say ; you reap what you sow , Kaname . "

Takuma stated fearlessly making a fine brown eyebrow raise at that .

Things had been understandably precarious between them after that incident and all ..but the pureblood couldn't help the slight surprise taking over his features as he heard that . It still felt too foreign hearing that tone and those words in particular from Takuma of all people . Though maybe it shouldn't have been so surprising .

Kaname's expression remained unchanged for the most part , and If it were anyone else , they wouldn't have noticed . But it is Takuma we are talking about . He did catch the brief display of emotions dancing in the brunette's eyes .

Somehow , witnessing that imperceptible flash of surprise flicker in the pureblood's eyes managed to infuriate Takuma more than anything .

 _He had the nerve to feel surprised !_ After all that had transpired , kaname found it surprising to hear that tone from him . Had he really imagined , no , deluded himself into thinking that friendship or loyalty could stay intact after such thing ?

Kaname's lips curled upwards ever so slightly , a smirk of sorts , the hidden meaning behind it only known to the purebood himself . Soon enough , the brunette heaved a deep breath and then retorted back calmly " I suppose we all do . "

With unrivaled grace , Kaname rose to his feet , his movements a thin line between intimidating and foreboding on one hand and on the other , calm , harmless , when in fact , he was nothing but a gruesome predator .

Takuma followed the other's movements with his eyes , a calm and rather calculating yet resigned expression planted on his weary face .

There's glint of malevolence shining in those russet eyes that made Takuma wonder if some part in the pureblood relished in how such action further emphasized his superiority , if that was possible .

" However , sometimes other people do that on our behalf " Thee brunette added before striding his way out of the room .

 _My sin is yours for the reaping , Zero Kiryuu ._

 **.Vk**

Walking down the hallway that no one else used except for Ruka sometimes and now Yuki , Kaname 's mind replayed the earlier conversation he had with a certain noble . The narrow hallway had no windows and was only decorated with candle lights flickering every so often . With each step the pureblood took , a pair of candles dulled and struggled then gave out , surrendering to the dark forced on them by the pureblood's lethal presence . And Kaname hardly cared about that . He kept mulling over that thing .

 _I have brought balance to this world by doing so . After all , a place so peaceful and bright , with only joy and pureness dictating it , would never last . there should always be Light and Darkness . Love and Hate . Good and Evil . Miracles and Tragedies ._

 _Without such beauty of two extremes , the world would be mundane - a battlefield with no army , no blood , no scent of war or destruction prevailing . A scenery with no colors , greenery with no withering petals . A life with no Autumn ._

 _Love hinders . Love weakens . Yuki was a perfect example of that ._

 _In contrast , hate nourishes . Hate strengthens . Hate overpowers all else ._

He couldn't care less if the silver haired hunter loathed him to no end . After all , as long as he had Yuki's love , nothing else mattered .

It was a sin , the most unforgivable of which , he knew . And that's exactly why he sought it out . He couldn't repent . He couldn't pave the road to a better , righteous version of himself . Because what lies in wait is sure to be forgiveness and that he did not deserve .

His steps came to a halt at that . Why was he justifying his actions then ? Why claim he'd brought peace by doing such deeds ?

Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of his self-condemnation ?

Ah .. right .. Surely he wouldn't parade about , openly revealing what he'd done . After all , his guilt was something for his to keep and live with , nobody else' s .. He'd carefully cradled and concealed it despite knowing how much it felt the same as holding liquid fire close to his heart – the same way he'd embraced his self-condemnation and firm conviction that he was to sin over and over again so that no amount of repenting would atone for the myriad , the mountain-worth of sins he'd accumulated over his shoulders and willingly committed .

Should anyone question his deeds , bringing balance to the world should be enough to keep their mouths shut .

Nodding to himself , the pureblood resumed walking towards his chamber and finally reached with his nimble fingers , attempting to twist the knob when a certain vision assaulted his senses .

The hand retreated . Kaname , with a bitter expression , gazed down at his own hands like he was staring at a criminal .

 _No .._ The brunette shook his head , adamant and confident .

If one would honestly trace the root of all evil , then one conclusion would be reached . It was all Rido's fault . And now they were all paying the heaviest price .

Yes .. The world had to suffer the consequences , to reap the fruits of awakening an ancestor .

Eyes darkening in apathy , kaname regained his usually cold demeanor and twisted the door knob , mind still wandering .

He must have been too distracted and preoccupied by his own thoughts if he couldn't notice his sister's presence until his eyes landed on her figure , still and peaceful as she slept on his bed .

He spent few moments just standing by the door frame , gazing at her all the while struggling against his raging thoughts , oblivious to the way the bed shifted ever so slightly .

Eventually and slowly , Kaname started approaching the four poster bed , smiling a bit when he finally sat down next to the princess . What he didn't see coming was how she suddenly sprang up as soon as he brushed a strand of her chocolate brown hair .

" Oni-san " Hesitant , fragile and soft , yet filled with warmth , her voice echoed about the walls of the room astonishing him for the second time .

 _She was awake all along ? How could he have not noticed ?_

" I must have been too distracted to notice you being awake or you must have incredibly sharpened your stealthiness . " Teased the elder as he lightly flicked Yuki's forehead making her pout which in turn made him chuckle . He was honestly surprised to find her in his room . Even after reawakening , she preferred to stay in the day dorm most of the time . A part of him fluttered in hope at that .

" Why are you still up ? Ha ? "

" .. I don't know .. "

Something about the way she said it told him she didn't just mean sleeping .

 _I honestly don't know anything .. I don't know what I want anymore ._

Pursing his lips and putting on a delicate smile only reserved for his little Yuki , Kaname resumed brushing her fringe and hoarsely whispered " That's fine then ."

She didn't miss the dull pang of hurt and disappointment that belied his blank gaze though .

" Oni-sa- "

" Shuush , Yuki . " He'd admonished lightly before placing his fingers on her lips . The touch , gentle and tender , seemed to beg her to stop , to drop it .

 _Kiryuu Zero .. The manifestation of the darkest , gravest and most colossal of my sins to this day ._

 **.Vk**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer : I do not own V.K !**

 **Warning : I swear to God It is mentioned in the summary that this is a Kxz / Zxk fic . Yes , readers . It is kaze ! Or Zeka mostly - Even though I'm obsessed over bottom Zero - ( Story plot demands such ) Which means Yaoi / BL / BoyxBoy or whatever you wanna call it . So if you don't like that , don't proceed .**

 **Some of the events in this fic may and may have not occurred in the actual Manga . And some may have been twisted to match the story's plot .**

 **The line breaks indicate a change of time , pov or both . It may also signify a scene that occurred simultaneously ( or not ) .**

 **Italics indicate a flashback or inner feelings .**

 **Last but not least , there's a long chapter ahead , Enjoy ! PWC !**

… **.. VK …..**

" What's wrong , Yuki-chan ? " Cross had asked as he watched his adoptive daughter sip on her coffee , forlorn darkness dancing in her eyes .

He didn't know whether the question went by unnoticed or if she'd actually heard it but chose to ignore it . Either ways , he could already taste the bitter atmosphere rolling off her in waves .

The retired hunter would be lying if he said he hadn't expected that .. But well .. he'd hoped her mood would brighten up as soon as they arrived there and ordered some coffee .

He was honestly taken aback when she came to his office and suggested going out for coffee hiding behind the excuse of boredom since Kaname's inner circle were out on a mission , kaname himself was having a meeting replacing Takuma who seemed to be more than happy to handle some Level Es than attend a meeting as he was now the head of the vampires council .

That was her excuse when in truth , she wanted , no needed to spend some time with her fathe- with her guardian .

The ache slowly growing inside of her was getting too much to tolerate .. She'd honestly believed it would end up driving her mad . She felt so .. She needed guidance .. And the only one available now was Cross .

There was Zero of course .. But he wasn't an option . She'd sensed his presence in the stable but couldn't bring herself to disturb his sleep .. After all , that's how he usually spent hs time there . Though it was obviously not just a matter of sleep .. She didn't have enough courage to face him just then .

" You look like a country in a state of political unrest . " The soft voice echoed about , this time snapping her out of her blurry haze . The metaphor was meant to come off as playful but cross quickly regretted it when he saw her smile weakly , saddened , agreeing .

" I've realized that being clueless and kept in the dark is actually better . " Finally opening up , Yuki started speaking as she traced the rim of her cup , eyes never meeting her guardian's . The thing that worried cross even more than before .

Yes , she's changed . Yes , he was aware . However , some part of him wished she'd never have to go through the pain of regaining her memories .

Unfortunately , he was in no position to deny her that right .. No matter how painful , she'd had the right to know . Was it worth it though ? All of those years , he was just buying her some time , delaying the inevitable until the danger , the threat was eliminated .

Now everything he'd been carefully building his whole life had come crashing down before his eyes and he was powerless to change any of it .. No longer could he walk into the kitchen and enjoy being eccentric with his adoptive kids . No longer could he walk in and find Zero teasing Yuki . No longe-

" Now I don't know where I stand anymore .. " She'd confessed , her eyes gradually widening like she was left in a dark corner , alone , struggling against the worst of her nightmares . Everything about her screamed of hesitance , terror and emotional distress it physically hurt to see her like that .

" In a way , I feel like Zero .. Never whole .. I feel like I'm constantly struggling against both sides of myself , neither willing to yield .. " Her voice trembled and nearly cracked as she gazed at her lap trying to hold back her tears and make herself look smaller . If only she could ..

Cross bit his lips and balled his fist till the knuckles turned a deathly white .

It broke his heart to see her like that , as if she was still caught in that phase of denial .. When she first got attacked , assaulted by those nightmares of her pureblood life .

He'd wanted to comfort her but the words died on his tongue as he realized he had nothing to say .. nothing would ever be enough to ease her pain .. And that hurt - immensely -.

He could only offer a listening ear , understanding , relating to her pain in a way . He'd come to the conclusion that if such was the only thing he could do for her then he was not going to think twice about giving it , generously and endlessly .

Though a question throbbed in his head .

 _For how long was he gonna watch the people he cared about suffer so much ?_

… **..… VK …**

Zero had been lying on hay when white lily decided it was the perfect time to munch on his hair like usual , snapping him out of his much needed nap , sadly .

" Argh ! Someone is trying to get some rest here , lily ! " He'd exclaimed , feeling extremely annoyed at that moment in particular . Like seriously ! At least allow me some sleep , universe !

But the look lily gave him managed to tone down his irritation . It was like those puppy eyes a moment then the ' I don't know what you're talking about . I didn't do that ' look the other .

" Jeez ! such a diva you are . " The hunter sighed softly as he ruffled his own hair then attempted to lie down again and would have resumed sleeping if it weren't for a certain cold sensation around his chest making itself known .

Confused , he blinked and reached inside his coat , fingers coming in contact with a cold metallic accessory . But It was not the first time he noticed that . He'd just preferred to ignore it in a futile attempt , trying to shrink his countless troubles , trying to keep his curiosity at bay .

Almost Instantly , his mind flashed back to that night .

 _He'd been injured and drained of energy when she found him , Sarah Shirabuki ._

 _And like any other pureblood , she decided to strike a deal with him , claiming she was privy to one secret that would turn his life upside down , quite literally ._

 _Of course she was smart enough to reveal only fragments of that earth shattering piece of information by handing him a beautiful sterling silver rose pendant that used to hang over her neck ._

 _It looked almost transparent and thoroughly fascinated the hunter though he would die before admitting it ._

 _He'd secretly admired jewellery , .. perhaps ' obsessed over ' would be the right term .. The ear piercings he had on were not only for show after all . Over the years , he'd grown into the habit of purchasing lots of silver accessories . It was just inevitable . He'd tried resisting the urge but quickly learned such thing only made it worse and soon gave up the fight . It was like some kind of disorder , in his eyes ._

 _The situation he was forced on back then was not much better . He knew he'd rather die before accepting a ' gift ' from yet a third pure blood . Sara , however , seemed ready to manipulate him if need be though he found that extremely ridiculous ._

 _No pureblood had the pleasure of dominating him , not even Kuran . He'd bared his fangs and openly disrespected the bastard far too many times and was more than ready to do the same with Sara or any other pureblood ._

 _And disrespect he showed ._

 _It was not a pleasant memory when her icy blue orbs pierced into his amethyst ones but he held her gaze , recalling the time he'd held Maria Kurenai close to him pointing bloody rose towards her chest all the while clutching a few strands of silken silver locks much the same as his own ._

 _And suddenly it dawned on him , that he was far too involved with females , somehow always ending up in close contact despite not wishing for anything to do with them ._

 _He honestly didn't know why they couldn't leave him the hell alone . the hunter merely wished to spend the rest of his short and volatile ex human life hunting the race he was born and raised to kill despite becoming.. No despite having been turned into one ._

 _It was asking for too much , he knew . Especially when he could no longer feel nothing but disdain from his own kind and was met with an equally degrading animosity from the other race . He couldn't care any less about vampires though . Zero definitely did not wish to be accepted among them because that would finalize the simple truth he refused to believe and fought against for the longest time - that he'd become one of them - ._

 _Zero didn't even consider adding humans to the equation due to obvious reasons . He was already far from that . Way too far to his liking ._

 _It's moments like these that he found himself astonished . He couldn't comprehend why his twin would wish to take his place , desperately desiring to be the one bitten by Shizuka ._

 _It befuddled him beyond belief .._

 _Ichiru had always been an enigma but Zero chose to disregard it . He 'd preferred to protect the way ichiru looked in his eyes rather than stress himself trying to interpret what belied those lilac orbs of his twin , so similar yet so different , Ichiru's has a wintry feel to them , making it second nature for Zero to associate anything related to that time of the year with his late younger twin ._

 _Ichiru's seemed to constantly have an edge of indescribable , inconceivable depth of sorrow .. Zero could almost touch the intolerable pain and heavily anguished streaks in his twin's eyes .. But that was it . He was always so close but not quite - limbs barely touching the surface of grief that was Ichiru's pain - ._

 _In a way , it was Zero's fault . And up till now , he could still recognize the feeling of guilt gnawing at his insides whenever his twin crossed his mind . And to live with it , he vowed ._

 _If it was the last thing he could do to take some of Ichiru's pain away , to feel the same , to make up for the lack of being a better brother , Zero was more than willing to spend the rest of his agonizing life paying the price for his deeds , denying Ichiru his simple right of leading a peaceful , normal and healthy life ._

 _The hunter , however , was soon snapped out of his depressive thoughts when Sara's voice seeped into his mind pulling him out of his misery . Quite ironic , ha ?_

 _What business did she have with him again ?_

 _Oh .. right ._

 _A deal ._

 _An exchange of secrets with control . However , she could have been lying for all he knew . After all , isn't that what purebloods excelled at ? Manipulating a situation to their liking ?_

 _What if she wasn't ? A voice whispered , curious , doubtful and exploring ._

 _Once again , Zero found himself in the center of an active volcano , a war between two purebloods , one of them staying constant whilst the other party frequently changed ._

 _At first it was Kuran and Shizuka , though Zero had to admit he was deeply involved that time in particular ._

 _then it was Rido's turn ._

 _Now Sara .._

 _Seriously ! Do purebloods have nothing better to do than seek each other's throat ?_

 _However , it was a lot different with Sara's case ._

 _Even though she was completely sure that no one would refuse such offer , she still preferred to reveal the rest after making sure Kiryuu had gotten her blood thus forging a bond with her and ripping apart the one he had with Kuran which meant ruining the brunette pureblood's plans ._

 _For the hunter , he'd be free of the master/slave bond he was forced on by Kuran Kaname . A win win situation at best ._

 _However , she could never , not even in a million years , expect that the silverette would blatantly turn down her offer ._

" _Foolish boy ! " she'd nearly hissed out back then ._

" _You don't even understand what am offering ! "_

 _His rejection seemed to rile her up more than he'd anticipated though maybe he should have expected no less . A pureblood having her plans ruined is nothing short of having a death wish . But that was okay . He'd lost count of the many times he'd signed his own death certificate after all ._

 _However and even after his refusal , she never took her necklace back from him , partly knowing that he would never figure out the mystery without her and partly hoping for it to intrigue him at some point ._

 _Little did she know , she wouldn't be there to witness it - her glorious plan coming to fruition - ._

 _Leaving behind only her words , the pureblood met her demise sooner than anyone had expected , by the hands of Kuran , directly or not ._

 _The fact that he did not physically do it himself doesn't change the fact he was after her life . And that he succeeded in accomplishing it ._

 _However , the brunette pureblood couldn't have known that his victory came a little bit too late . Sara seemed to have etched her mark in history when she confronted a certain silver haired hunter one day ._

' _You're going to need me to find out , a part of me to be precise , my memories .' Those were Sara's last words spoken to Zero before she vanished leaving him speechless ._

 **…..** **VK …**

A certain pureblood paced back and forth in her chamber in the moon dorm , passing by the mirror and stopping when she caught her own reflection .

She would never get used to it .. the long hair , the look in her eyes . She was no longer the same ..

Not the innocent human girl anymore ..

In fact , her whole figure and features served as nothing but a painful reminder of her parents , her mother especially ..

She could still it recall it so vividly ..

 _The time they gathered in the room and kaname started telling a story of a beautiful rose he'd come across .. She'd been excited but he looked sad , for her sake .. His expression shifted into a bittersweet one as he addressed their parents asking them if they were just going to keep Yuki locked in the mansion forever ._

 _She had no problem with it though . As long Kaname - Nii san came back home and told her stories , as long as they were all by her side , she couldn't ask for more .._

Hot tears rained down her cheeks as she saw white dotting her vision the more she drowned in those memories .

 _Her mother suddenly took her out of the room and away from Kaname then gently guided her into another room where she kneeled down and started apologizing before crimson ran down her face and everything went black_ .

Child or not , human or not .. somehow , she always ended up being a burden to those around her , exposing them to danger .. No not just danger .. She'd killed her parents .. She really had .. If it weren't for her existence , none of that would have happened .

Face scrunched up in pain , the kuran princess gripped her white dresser as if it were a pillar , seeking to root herself , to keep her balance .

But she saw garnet instead of white .

Stepping away as the room started spinning before her , Yuki gasped and nearly stumbled over her own legs .

Crimson rivulets sluggishly streamed down the walls gathering and pooling on the floor only to start leaking through the edge of the wooden dresser , cupboard and everywhere .

Yuki visibly shook thrashing her head right and left then clutching it as she panted and squeezed her eyes shut , trying to block it all out .

It's been a long time since her reawakening yet those hallucinations did not stop .. They never have ..

She's just gotten better at hiding them ..

The princess crumbled down to the floor drowning in her tears . Her cries got louder and louder as she kept covering her face and doubled over , letting out the flood of anguish she'd held inside of her lest she ended up worrying those she cared about ..

And for a moment , she felt so utterly alone .. No one understood her .. No one should .. Being a pureblood meant never exposing your vulnerable side to anyone ..

She couldn't fit .. The night class in general treated her formally out of respect .. Whereas Kaname's inner circle didn't exactly get along with her .

She would never show it , but she felt so lonely .. Even kaname himself felt so out of her reach .. She didn't know if she was the one stopping herself from getting closer to him in fear of hurting his feelings even more or if it was just Kaname being himself ..

She just felt like there was a wall between them .

The night before provided a perfect example ..

When she voiced out her hesitance , Kaname's face instantly spoke volumes of the pain he truly felt but perfectly concealed under a mask of placid understanding .

She felt like the more she tried to fix her mistake , her words' choice, the more he slipped further away from her touch , gaze and world .

It seemed like every single thing she did ended up making him feel unwanted or something ..

She couldn't communicate without hurting him because of that goddamn wall !

The same applied to Zero .. and Sayori ..

Speaking of which and ironically .. for once , she was actually grateful for being alone in the moon dorm .

Earlier when she left with her adoptive father , Seiren was there , like a shadow , prepared to protect the pureblood princess with her life if it came down to it . Kaname must have given her orders to do that , thinking Yuki might do something clumsy once again and get herself into trouble .

But now the pureblood princess couldn't sense her anymore .. Maybe Kaname had sent her on a mission after making sure that Yuki was safe .. Or maybe she was actually close , skillfully hiding her presence ..

It didn't really matter .

All Yuki wanted to do now was drag her feet to bed and surrender to a lifetime of sleep . Maybe then the terrible ache residing in her chest would dull away .

 **…... VK …**

Meanwhile :

Somewhere in town , Three figures stood in the middle of a horde of Level Es .

At some point , a certain blonde haired noble got far too conceited for his own good and the cost was a powerful sharp and lethal 27 centimeters long claw deeply embedded in his abdomen .

" Hanabusa ! " Ruka exclaimed in shock and concern .

No matter how irritating her cousin might be , she definitely was not going to sit back and watch when a filthy level E feasted on him .

Before the eyes could catch , the caramel haired female rushed to her cousin's side and sent a powerful bout of energy towards the demented creature letting Hanabusa free in the process . The noble dropped to his feet and nearly collapsed if it weren't for Ruka holding him the last moment .

Unfortunately , Akatsuki was too preoccupied dealing with another group of Level Es . The thing that made him growl in frustration . _What the fuck was going on ?_ One moment they had everything under control like any other mission , and the next everything went downhill .

Luckily , there seemed to be no danger near the other two . Though maybe the threat now was not the level Es alone .

Ruka 's eyebrows knitted as she helped her cousin up or at least tried to .

The said female gasped , panicking when she found herself on the ground with Hanabusa on top of her , eyes glowing crimson and fangs elongating as he neared her neck .

" Hana- " Her words got interrupted as she realized she couldn't use her powers to control the blonde's mind She didn't have time to and even if she could , she had no power . The fight had been a long one and ended up draining her .

 **…... VK …**

Few hours later , back in the moon dorm :

Kaname's inner circle gathered in the grand living room , staring wordlessly at a certain blonde noble .

" Your blood tasted like banana split . " Hanabusa blurted out after a moment of deliberation . Which was a complete contradiction ! Only Hanabusa could do that .

The blonde frowned , expression confused as he analyzed the whole situation , trying to comprehend the fact he'd just complimented his cousin .

 _The nerve of him !_ Ruka seethed . _He had the audacity to say such thing after nearly draining her . Did he just fucking compare her to a freaking banana split ?!_

" Say that again and I'll personally have YOUR banana split in two ! " The caramel haired noble twisted the words back at her cousin , very much aware of the crude turn their conversation took yet unable to stop herself from lashing out at the moron of a cousin she had .

As soon as the words escaped her lips , everyone present tensed and grew silent as her warning drew different reactions from the others .

Akatsuki pursed his lips , suppressing a chuckle or at least trying to . Surprisingly the one who didn't make an effort resisting their laughter was Senri and eventually Rima which was a joke in itself .

Takuma , merely amused , stood by the staircase as he surveyed the whole scene .

The person addressed or well the victim , had his lips parted , never expecting such comeback . But soon Hanabusa processed the fact he just got insulted and made fun of . And that he was not going to tolerate !

" Hey ! what did you just sa- " Rising to his feet , the blonde exclaimed but Ruka was already making her way upstairs totally ignoring him and now he just looked like an idiot .

" What did I do ? Would she have liked it if I said her blood tasted bad ?! " Demanded Hanabusa , flailing his arms around .

 _Seriously ! he'd never understand how her mind works ._

Akatsuki shook his head and smiled then approached his troublesome cousin putting a supportive hand on the shorter male's shoulder then made his way upstairs .

" We should call it a night . " The ginger haired noble mocked as he ascended the stairs , earning himself nods of approval from everyone except of Hanabusa who sat in a corner brooding over the dose of humiliation he got himself and over something nice !

Akatsuki was strolling down the hallway when a door to his right slammed open , almost startling him . However , he'd seen it coming due to his superior senses .

" Ruka ? "

The noble in question looked surprised like she didn't expect him there . _How laughable ._

He would have rolled his eyes but it was not like him and something else . Widening in alert , amber eyes caught the action in slow motion . Ruka seemed to sway and her legs gave out . She nearly fell if it weren't for him holding her in place .

" Didn't you take your blood tablets ? " voice a bit harsher than intended , the male questioned as he finally realized the only reason why his female cousin would nearly faint like that .

" I was too irritated to .. " Ruka whispered , kind of ashamed , as she sought to keep her balance instead of carelessly pulling away despite wanting to . It just felt too comfortable having such broad shoulders and taut muscles hold her still .

It was the truth though .. She was still fuming up over Hanabusa's actions . Why did he have to be so troublesome ?

 _Like I'm gonna believe that ._ Akatsuki truly ended up rolling his eyes that time . _More like you couldn't stand the idea of it . You couldn't imagine how your sacred blood , meant for ' lord ' kaname's taste buds , got wasted on Hanabusa , more or less .. It didn't really got to waste_ _though considering how he truly needed it_.

Sighing in exasperation , the fiery haired noble pulled away but still kept his hands on Ruka's shoulders when something dawned on him . He'd initially intended on giving up but somehow a new spark got ignited at their proximity .

And suddenly he found himself blurting out " Would you rather have mine ? "

 _Maybe it was time he switched tactics . He'd been the gentleman all along when really , some aggressiveness might just do the trick_.

 _Time to sweep Ruka off her feet ._

As if those words and that tone were not shocking enough , Akatsuki had to astonish Ruka even more when he inched closer and pinned her against the wall with just a gaze , with his entire body , never holding her hands up .

The poor caramel haired noble shrank against the wall , not expecting such escalation , in the least of terms .

The offer itself was not strange .. But the way he'd suggested it and the sensuality he'd employed in approaching her .. It left tingles moving up her spine .

" Akatsuki , what are y- "

But she didn't have the chance to complete her sentence when he broke out into a fit of laughter . And suddenly , realization hit her like a brick wall .. Was it .. a prank ?

" You should really stop spending so much time with Hanabusa . His ridiculous genes are rubbing off on you . " Face flushed , Ruka exclaimed as she pushed him away and got back in her room , slamming it in the same manner she used few moments ago .

Outside , Akatsuki sighed at his own cowardice .

 _Why did he have to be so .. insecure and unsure of himself .._?

Meanwhile , Ruka sagged down the door .

 _What the hell ?_

 _Why did she feel disappointed ?_

 _What were you waiting for , silly ?_

Her eyes widened and a hand rushed upwards to cover her mouth preventing a gasp from escaping .

 _Could it be ?_ Somewhere in her subconsciousness , she yearned for him to make the first move ?

 _No .. No .. No .._ Shaking her head in denial , Ruka didn't stop until she felt lightheaded ..

 _What would that make me ?_

It's either I'm a very cruel attention seeker or I really do somehow .. harbour .. some feelings towards Akatsuki yet adore Lord kaname ..

 _What the hell do I feel ? Am I .. Would I be leading him on if I confronted him about it ?_

… **... VK …**

It was around 7 o'clock when Zero decided to take a walk around the campus , not exactly patrolling , his mind was far too preoccupied by unyielding memories and thoughts to be focusing on his perfect duties in any case .

After quite some time , he'd reached the fountain and ended up blocking out the sound of water rushing down , almost as if he was too consumed by his thoughts to be distracted by any sound , scent or presence .

Almost though .

When he sensed a familiar aura , Zero tensed , a natural reaction of his hunter instincts . But soon relaxed when he realized it was Ichijo .

Unconsciously , the hunter kept moving forward , eyes darting here and there , judging , scanning and taking in his surroundings despite the fact he knew every inch in the school like the back of his hands .

It was ruined after the battle with Rido , yea . But it was rebuilt in the same fashion , making it easier to fall into nostalgia as one sauntered his way around the school grounds .

" Are you just going to stand there like a ghost ? " Voice playful yet laced with a hint of vague emptiness , Takuma asked before slowly turning to face the hunter standing a few steps away .

The silverette chuckled softly , though it seemed more like a half -hearted scoff .

The thing that had Takuma perplexed , amused even . What ensued though was tenfold surprising .

Emerald eyes patiently scanned the hunter as he inched closer and flopped down next to the noble , seemingly confused by his own actions .

" Is the world coming to an end soon ?! " Mirthlessly , The blonde exclaimed , partly grateful for the distraction , the momentary respite he was granted in the form of the hunter's unexpected company .

Zero Kiryuu was understandably the last person Takuma had expected to be sitting with like this admiring the starry night . Actually , he would have never expected the hunter to be in the list of people he'd end up sitting with in the first place .

" Maybe ."

the fact Kiryuu was casually responding back made the answer sound even more probable .

 _Maybe the world is really coming to an end soon_ .. Takuma ruefully concluded . _Maybe it wouldn't be so bad ._ After all , he was already struggling every day and night against an existential crisis ever since her departure ..

Feeling he'd intruded on a far too personal moment , Zero started unconsciously rubbing the necklace hanging around his neck whilst Takuma resumed gazing at the moonlit sky , mind lost in waves of memories and reflecting .

For quite some time , they just sat like that enjoying the rare moment of comfortable silence , without having to talk or put on a facade , without having to be on alert or whatnot .

That was until something hit home . The silverette gasped as he finally realized who would help him figure everything out . And that was none other than the blonde currently sitting next to him . What a coincidence !

It was no secret that Takuma was the only one close enough to the blonde pureblood before things got out of hand . She'd kept him by her side for reasons everyone knew of . But one thing nobody knew was how close those two had actually gotten during the time they spent together .

However , it definitely ran deeper than anyone had expected if the way Takuma became a shell of the man he was after her death was any indication .

And Zero , in a moment of selfishness , was determined to find everything out if it meant bringing him closer to his goal .

In a matter of seconds , Zero flipped the blonde vampire down , effortlessly straddling him .

Not expecting that , to say the least , Takuma tumbled down gasping as the silverette hovered over him effectively trapping his figure there , denying him escape .

The blonde's expression turned serious as he suddenly felt threatened . He'd naively presumed the hunter meant no harm when he came out of nowhere and just flopped down like they were childhood friends or something .

 _How foolish and absolutely unbecoming of me !_ The noble berated himself harshly .

He could have easily resorted to violence but the option didn't just seem to register in his mind at that moment . Unfortunately , that meant his only way out was , pathetically , his words and uncharacteristic glare .

" Kiryuu ! " Voice firm and chills-giving , Takuma exclaimed , trying to get up . Nonetheless , to no avail .

 _What the hell was going on ? What was Kiryuu up to ?_

" I may be the most lenient of which , but am still a noble vampire . " warned the blonde as he made to get up but was once again halted , that time by the hunter's jaw-dropping choice of words .

" Senpai , I need you . "

Emerald eyes widened at that . _H..he couldn't have heard right .. He needed some more .. Elaboration_. Which soon came in a whisper from the male above him .

" I need your blood . I need your memories of her . " Zero confessed , all the while moving his hands , one of them caressing those golden strands - in a manner so natural it nearly shocked the hunter himself - and the other , resting on Takuma's rapidly beating heart . He supposed it was a way to get the noble to cooperate , trying to get him to relax ..

Entranced , as if under a spell , Takuma stilled and held his breath as he gazed at those lilac orbs up close , closest than ever before .

For a moment , he wondered if it was a charm of sorts but quickly dismissed the idea . The noble , after all , had been trained against mental aggression and that was no spell . That was simply Zero Kiryuu ensnaring him .

Gulping ever so softly , the blonde tried but couldn't take his eyes off the male above him , especially not after hearing that .

 _Her .._

Now laden with grief , Takuma 's eyes narrowed and dimmed into the darkest shade of green possible .

 _Her memories ? Why would Kiryuu need Sara's memories ?_

 _The hunter needed his blood ?_

 _How .. Why .. He'd die before acknowledging his vampire side .. And showing that to another vampire , a noble , one of Kaname's inner circle no less , came as a brutal shock ._

 _Why .. What would reduce him to such state ?_

During the time Takuma pondered many issues and fought back many conflicted emotions , the hunter found it to be the perfect chance and descended down as he deemed it alright to proceed with his actions .

It felt foreign .. those words and actions altogether .. They felt so different , so not like himself yet Zero knew , deep inside , that he was doing the right thing . Something he should have done a long time ago but was putting on hold for reasons unknown to even himself .

Frozen yet somehow responsive , the noble unconsciously tilted his head , shivering as he felt Kiryuu's breath hovering over his neck . He felt scared , exposed and vulnerable .. He felt terrifyingly defenseless .. and not just physically .

That topic .. Bringing that topic up .. It was like the final chord coming undone in his bottled up emotions . And sadly Kiryuu seemed to know just what buttons to push . He'd successfully paralyzed Takuma into submission by those words alone .

Okay , he'd given blood to Shiki before but that was Shiki ! It was not abnormal .. It was not mind boggling .. It did not send his adrenaline rush skyrocketing to its climax .

Shaking to the core , Takuma heaved a deep breath and did his best not to hyperventilate as sharp unfamiliar fangs broke into his skin drawing blood , emotions and memories away from him , without his consent .. ?

No ..

He was not so sure anymore ..

The hunter sucked in a deep breath from his nose as he started feeding on the noble under him , eventually squeezing his eyes shut as he was granted permission to all that was Takuma .

Instinctively , the blonde did the same , screwing his eyes shut as if predicting a car crash and in a way it felt strangely similar . Reliving those memories felt just like an accident , abrupt , unexpected and brutally harsh .

A lone teardrop escaped the noble's closed eyes , making its way down his cheeks and finally meeting exotic strands of silver .

Takuma's blood was not as sweet , intoxicating or fulfilling as Kuran's or Yuki's but it still beat the tablets . Though the hunter would never admit that .

He was already having an internal battle , warring against his inner conflict .. His beliefs , his restraints , his morals ..

He tried to convince himself it was not the act of feeding that he so desperately wished for and craved but even that seemed like a terribly lame excuse to his own ears and soon he found himself surrendering to his inner beast .

The monster wanted answers and it was going to get them , regardless of the means . And while at it , why not enjoy a much needed meal ?

Some part of him cringed and nearly pulled at that away but the other persisted and tightened its hold on him forcing the feeding session to last longer and longer .

It was some time later that Takuma felt the hunter pull away . He'd faintly processed the events taking place and even though too drained , he felt good . It felt nice to let it all out in a nonverbal way ..

Everything seemed to swim before his eyes but he welcomed it , not realizing that at some point , he'd brought the hunter closer to him and loosely gripped his hair as much as the situation allowed him .

As time ticked by , none of them said or did anything for that matter . And really , they needn't .

Takuma opted to move but couldn't find enough energy to do so so he just succumbed to a fleeting moment of stillness , waiting for the hunter to get up .

But it seemed like the other male had no intention of doing so any time any soon .

Too shaken up by what he'd seen , Zero remained on top of the blonde for more solid five minutes , trying to gather his bearings and regain mastery of his body that went numb with the shock of what he'd lived in a matter of few minutes .

He'd seen Takuma's memories of Sara , the noble's emotions and perceptions of her . It started with sympathy that soon changed into empathy , for whom exactly , Zero didn't know anymore .

But he knew one thing for sure .. Sara now coursed in his veins .. Her mentality , her core , her true self .

 _A part of me ._

Her words from back then echoed in Zero's head with gruesome clarity making him choke back a gasp of realization as he slowly pulled away .

The necklace glowed an intense fuschia and as if not already traumatized enough , Zero found himself once again assaulted by yet another flood of memories , that time directly derived from the deceased pureblood 's memories .

Now that he could relate to her , now that he'd reached a certain level of knowing her thanks to Takuma , the necklace finally accepted him and allowed him access to Sara's entire life .

Imagine living a pureblood's life , thousands and thousands of years , in a matter of seconds , every memory , every scene , every emotion , all that scheming and plotting .. Zero literally felt like his soul was slowly leaving his body . Torturously slow .

" K.. Kiryuu ? " Lying on his side , Takuma whispered hoarsely when he noticed the hunter acting strange . But was met with no response . It was like he never existed to begin with .

Zero heaved a deep breath as he clutched the necklace with one hand and started digging the other in grass , eyes stretched open and mouth parted spilling a stream of incoherent trembling letters .

He felt the exact same agony when the transformation process started , only difference now was it being tenfold excruciating.

But that was not all .

Through the myriad of random memories , scenes and faces , Zero let out a silent scream as he witnessed one scene in particular , from Sara's perspective .

She'd idolized Shizuka Hio yet held an immense amount of critique towards her . Sara believed she would grow up to perfect what the mad blooming princess couldn't . she believed she would succeed and claim the throne as hers . Though Shizuka desired no throne , just her beloved . The thing that Sara found rather unbecoming of a pureblood .

Holding the reigns , standing on the top of the food chain , purebloods should never allow anyone to cloud their purpose or stand in their way , shaping a vulnerable spot and making them an easy prey .

Purebloods should only think of themselves . Sara loved no one , trusted no one , depended on no one . And expected all purebloods to do the same not deviate .

Her beliefs however , did not stop her from admiring Shizuka in a dark and twisted sense . The mad blooming princess had that uncanny ability after all , bewitching anyone by just a mere mention of her existence . It ran in the family . And Sara as a child , couldn't help but feel intrigued . She wanted to see more of those rosy pastel eyes , those demented void and saddened orbs , that depth , that world .

That's why she'd fallen into the habit of sneaking all the way to the cell in which Shizuka was imprisoned , every night , just admiring from afar .

However , everything changed when one night , she did the same , masked her aura , scent and any trace of her being there only to witness a certain dark haired child conversing with the silver haired pureblood , promising to free her on one condition .

The child was a pureblood as well , his features those of a very familiar bloodline . Dark brown locks . Eyes a blend of chocolate brown and shocking garnet . Intentions cruel and unremorseful . Consequences irreversible .

The boy knowing just how dangerous a maddened pureblood was - suffering the loss of her loved one - , without an ounce of hesitation , freed her allowing Shizuka a chance to avenge her beloved yet commanding that she turned one of the kiryuu twins , seeking a chain reaction , a spiral of vengeance that would one day put an end to all purebloods . The parasitic existence that should be eliminated , in his point of view . But that of course was something for him to keep .

From a third person's perspective though , it all seemed like a game of chess to the Kuran child .

A hunter child would eventually grow up into the perfect pawn , the ultimate knight , the shield of his precious sister . The weapon he'd later on point towards Rido .

Shoving the necklace off his chest with force enough to tear it apart and send it rolling all over the grass , Zero staggered his way to his feet , eyes darkening in various conflicted emotions , shock , betrayal , grief … and many .. many .. more ..

Detached from the world , he wandered aimlessly , unable to comprehend what he'd seen .

His vision swam and darkened , much like the rest of his world as he replayed that scene ..

There was just no way ..

Kuran .. Kuran was an asshole yes .. His enemy , yes . A manipulative pureblood , the devil's incarnate .. But that .. That .. was too felonious , even for a devil ..

Zero felt his blood boil yet run cold at the same time .. He felt suffocated and had to gasp for his breath yet he couldn't seem to draw in the amount of oxygen he so desperately needed to function properly .. He wanted to sink to the ground and break down , scream his lungs out but only managed a whimper instead ..

Everything whirled in his head in full speed rendering him speechless , leaving him to fend for himself after such traumatic discovery . And oh he couldn't ..

The next few hours passed in a slow mundane pace as he locked himself in his room , caught in a phase of denial at first , re-formulating his plans and re-evaluating his options .

Vision blurred , eyes stinging and heart bleeding , Zero remained on bed , gaze trained on one random spot ever since he reached his room .

Nodding to himself , the hunter sniffed and vowed to seek revenge .

 _It would be so easy . Kuran would play right into his hand actually , providing that every move was done accurately . There would be no need to rush unless the devil himself decided to pay him a visit or make the first move ._

This time though , Zero would make sure to flip the whole chessboard over his enemy .

After all , he'd learned from the best .

 _From now on-wards , let it fall on me and my enemies ._

He knew his own vengeance may come back and bite him but it would be worth it . _Yes . it would be_.. He kept telling himself .

At first the idea of seeking revenge was just that . An idea .. Something he'd ended up thinking of out of spite , like a child sulking .. He had his reasons back then but now .. Now he had the ultimate right to put his plan into action .

Admiring the blue veins crossing purple ones that laid under his excellent vampire vision , the hunter narrowed his eyes and rubbed his wrist absently , mind working full speed crafting the perfect retaliation , scheming every move , every step , every inch .. Every minute detail . Every maneuver .

With one last glance at his own wrist , the silverette pursed his lips in a tight line and threw his head back , exhaling softly .

It has been quite some time since he last fed and soon the inevitable curse , the hunger , would rear its ugly head snatching the one thing he desperately held on to for the longest time - control - . However and soon enough , he was going to get it back .

Swiftly , his eyes slid shut in a relaxed manner , giving him a serene vibe , a stark contrast to the brewing storm he felt on the inside .

His mind buzzed with an echo so persistent and repetitive ..

 **His** name .

There was just no fucking way .. Why ?! His whole life .. Almost his whole life was part of that monster's scheme .. He was being used from day one and spent those years oblivious to all of it ..

It seemed like he never had a choice in anything , he knew . but never in his life did he guess that it started too early . That early .. All by the hands of none other than Kuran Kaname .

To think that the bastard had the audacity to act regal and parade around like a fucking peacemaker , deceiving everyone , especially Yuki , into thinking he was a harmless savior or a loving brother , a civil leader .

Just thinking of it made Zero feel sick to his stomach .

But he curbed his emotions and willed himself to stay calm and not jump out of bed shoving a dagger in the bastard's face it would not be recognizable any more .

 _Damn he'd love that though . It would bring him great satisfaction !_

 _Hold your horses , Zero ._ The hunter told himself , trying to calm down to the best of his ability .

 _He would not expose himself just yet . It would spoil the fun of it . Instead , he'd drag it as long as he possibly could . Kuran was going to suffer a fate worth than death . He'd see to it_.

 _Your days are coming to an end soon , Kuran ._

Promised Zero as he stretched over the bed and reached a file that sat atop his bedside table , movements too abrupt to signify a well composed state of mind . And who could blame him !

Hastily , he flipped it open and eyed the names on the list , settling on a certain one in particular . _This will do_ . he told himself as he tossed the file away and relaxed back on the headboard .

His hands started shaking nervously the more he envisioned his plan . It was , obviously , not a walk in the park .. But he would carry it out if it's the last thing he does . There was just no going back .

Drawing in a shuddery breath , the silver haired hunter decided to rest for a while , vaguely hoping that Takuma was smart enough to hide his scent that lingered on him after the feeding session . Of course , Zero himself had already done the same thing as soon as he reached his room .

Even though disoriented by shock , he was still wise enough to do that . Last thing he needed now was arousing suspicions about him and the blonde noble . It would be the first domino in his castle tumbling down before he even got to start the game .

And that was the last of his sober thoughts .

With each passing moment , he felt his eyelids getting heavier and soon surrendered to a world of numbness .. The moonlight hovered over his figure caressing his heart that has gone cold with grief , hoping to be the one alleviating his pain .

… **.** **VK …**

Midnight :

A very familiar presence made itself known snapping Zero's attention towards the windows .

 _All hail , Lord Kaname ._ The hunter inwardly mocked . Seconds later , a dark figure materialized in front of the said hunter .

Smirking , Zero allowed a trail of smoke to leave his lips . The eddy spiraled in the air before his eyes . He held the cigarette between his index and middle finger as he sat on bed in a casual manner , something he never did in the pureblood's presence .

Up till now , no word was exchanged , only garnet and amethyst gazes clashed with an intense ferocity enough to make anyone's hair stand up .

The hunter only watched as Kuran sent him questioning looks . His russet eyes seemed to be asking , wondering , surprised .

 _Zero Kiryuu was not the smoking type after all .._

" Guess you do pick habits after all when you spend so much time with someone . " Kaname nonchalantly mocked as he relaxed against the open window , referring to the hunter's sensei , Toga Yagari .

Not appreciating those words , Zero scoffed before retorting back " Sensei lives for that which ironically and slowly would lead him to his own demise . I , on the other hand , rarely do it . Like a forbidden fruit every so often . " The hunter was not fond of explaining himself or justifying his actions and he most definitely was not thrilled about leading such conversation with Kuran but he wanted to make his point clear .

Sure enough , the bastard seemed to take the hint . And when he did , he frowned ever so slowly , almost imperceptibly .

The silverette looked so relaxed almost as if he was expecting him , eagerly waiting for such thing to happen , for the pureblood to show up . And if that was not alarming , then kaname didn't know what was .

Suddenly , he wished the hunter would act like usual , go about throwing insults or pointing bloody rose despite knowing how futile such thing was .

Why feel alarmed ? Because the way Kiryuu behaved right now felt disturbingly similar to a calm before the storm .

Yes Kiryuu had always loathed him for various reasons , one of them was his being a vampire , a pureblood at that , other reasons were too many to count . However , he had never pulled the trigger despite having more than one opportunity to do so .

Now though , a mortifying and thick aura glinted , rolling off him in waves . Kaname had a word for that . EVIL .

that was not right . Zero Kiryuu did not possess such darkness . Kaname narrowed his eyes at that . it was like standing before the devil himself . He'd have delved into the matter deeper , observing the whole situation , were it not for Kiryuu talking again .

" So what real business do you have here , Kuran-senpai ? Finally figured out you could not manipulate me ? That I won't be there at your beck and call ? " The hunter nearly spat the words . And a certain pureblood was not pleased at that . _Leave it to Kiryuu to make such word sound more like an insult than an honorific ._

" Do not flatter yourself , Kiryuu . I could bring you down to your knees in the blink of an eye , if I so wished . " Voice darkening with various undertones of maliciousness , Kaname warned , sending a message for the ex human to know his place .

He only came there to feed the impudent filth but the hunter just had to be the same ungrateful brat . If the choice was his , he wouldn't have gone through the pain of trying to get it into the hunter's thick head that he could just get this over with and take what he needed making it thousand times easier for both of them .

The only reason he started giving blood to Kiryuu was Yuki . In more ways than one .. Finalizing the creation of the ultimate weapon against Rido , thus protecting everyone from him on one hand and on the other , taking Yuki's feelings into consideration .

After all , if the hunter were to go insane and eventually hunted , no words would fit , no words could even begin to describe how such thing would make her feel . The thought of it alone left a bitter aftertaste in Kaname's consciousness . And the stupid hunter didn't even know how much meant to her .

How could he ! How could he have Yuki's heart and still claim it was in fact Kaname's ! Kiryuu had the nerve to feel bitter about that and shove it back in the pureblood's face , ignorantly thinking that Yuki wholeheartedly belonged to Kaname .

" Why not do it then ? " Provoked the silver haired hunter , thoroughly enjoying the effect of his words on the normally placid pureblood .

Kaname 's face remained emotionless but Zero knew he'd succeeded in riling him up - ruffling some feathers - . After all , he'd unfortunately spent enough time with the bastard to be able to read his expressions . No matter how concealed , the hunter could tell that he'd successfully gotten under the pureblood's skin .

 _Oh , he'd seen nothing yet . There was more to come ._

" Ah , I will answer that . Because you can't have your precious Yuki witness that side of you more than necessary . " The hunter sneered swaying the hand holding the cigarette as he sent the other male a piercing gaze . He knew he'd hit the bull's eye when Kuran's expression shifted into a semblance of a scowl . But the smoldering look left his russet eyes as soon as it'd appeared . That moment though was all Kiryuu needed to bask in the bliss of his accomplishment . Tiny yes but an accomplishment nonetheless .

" I find it rather petulant of you to resort to such pathetic attempts to provoke me . " To his credit , the pureblood succeeded in concealing his anger and remained rather emotionless . Such thing only fueled the hunter's desire to say more .

" You beating around the bush only further confirms my words though . She might have accepted her vampire side but you still wish to remain the tamed beast in her eyes , right ? "

Zero smirked before further enraging the other male with his conclusions and tone altogether . The hunter then relaxed even more on bed as he took a breath of smoke before adding

" Or .. Maybe you are getting insecure and your obsession to control Yuki's world won't allow her close to me . You could have easily had Takuma relay the message though I wouldn't have agreed to come of course . That's beside the point though . Oh speaking of which .. I'm kind of wondering if Takuma actually heeds your command anymore . " Zero's face split into a sinister grin as soon as he concluded his magnificent speech . _Boy was he enjoying this !_

Deep inside , Kaname seethed . The ex human 's insolence was rapidly getting on his nerves . But he'd honestly tired out of smashing the boy against walls every time so he chose to stay calm .

If the kid honestly thought he was doing a good job provoking him then he had something else coming . Mind games , war of words .. you name it . Just pose a challenge then watch and learn . Kuran Kaname does not just lose and especially not to his own pawn .

Zero , observing the other vampire , inwardly snarled at that insufferable brat . It's not that he craved some action , getting shoved into a wall or something . No .

However , the satisfaction brought after watching some beastly emotion in those garnet eyes would have been worth it . He wanted Kuran to keep on showing his true self , the one not even Yuki managed to witness after reawakening . No one seemed to any ways .

And if that was the only thing Kuran prided himself in , then Zero would see to it that such control slowly ebbed away . He would tease and entice it out . He would make sure that Kuran got what he deserved , drinking from the very same glass , bitter and cold . After all , revenge is a meal better served cold .

 _How brilliant ! The control you were using against me all this time would soon dwindle and leave your side . Let's see who would laugh the last , Kuran !_

 _The first game has just started ._

Too bad the pureblood didn't seem to want that kind of game though . _Well , he was just going to have to play the other one_ , Zero nearly chuckled at that .

 _Oh boy . This is going so smooth !_

Playtime over . ha ? Now it's time for some serious shit .

Cursing , a habit he would never grow out of apparently .

" Since you were kind enough to come all the way here and if it would make my mission easier then why the hell not ? " Drawled Zero as he put out his cigarette , voice suddenly shifting into a more alluring tone , touched with a fine coat of wickedness .

 _Mission ?_

Kaname questioned himself inwardly , preferring to focus on that and not the way Kiryuu's figure sinuously approached his . The pureblood would never admit but he , for the briefest moment , tensed up in alert as the other male drew closer .

So dangerously close ..

" Let me repay your kindness . I'll be gentle , senpai . " In a voice too sultry to belong to a hunter addressing a vampire , Zero whispered against Kaname's ears making the latter blink in sheer confusion .

 _Was Kiryuu on drugs ?_

 _But he couldn't smell any alcohol on the younger .. Plus , his movements were precise - not those of someone drunk at all -_ .

If he didn't know better , he'd would have confused the person before his eyes for Kiryuu Ichiru . Only **he** had that twisted side with a thin veil of polite pretense laced about it . But this was no Ichiru .

This was Zero and Zero doesn't just act like that which meant something was off .. Something must have gone terribly wrong for the hunter to behave like that . What though ? Kaname had no idea . And that was enough to spoil his mood . Never mind the fact it had been getting worse the moment he got inside this room in the first place .

But he was given no time to ponder over that when a wet sensation registered in his brain , precisely around his neck .

Breath hitching , the pureblood nearly pulled away at the intrusion but stopped himself knowing how ridiculous such action would seem . Like he was taken aback when in fact he was the one to seek the hunter out .

He didn't want to give Kiryuu the satisfaction of appearing confused , lost and oblivious , unable to predict his opponent's next move . So he stood still , giving off a calm vibe despite feeling .. discomfited .. to say the least .

Cold fingers brushed the hair at the back of his head whilst a hand gently rest on his chest , astonishing him more than he cared to admit .

Okay .. He wasn't so sure he wanted Kiryuu to stop being himself , openly disrespecting those higher than him .. He didn't like the current one because he couldn't read him .

The brunette was too distracted now wondering what the hell happened to affect Kiryuu's demeanor like that . Too distracted to see beyond the deceitful act of the hunter's .

The moment those fangs broke into his skin , Kaname bit his lips immediately fisting the younger's hair but never pulling him away .

There was something about the way Kiryuu drew blood this time that made Kaname feel dizzy faster than expected .. He was not savage about it but he wasn't taking his time either .. Put simply , his pace was irregular .

Moreover , The manner in which he took continuous greedy gulps of that rich nectar appalled the pureblood to oblivion . Again , he was not as gruesome as he should be but he wasn't gentle about it either ..

All of those thoughts whirled about Kaname's head whilst the silverette resumed feeding , fingers drawing a random pattern as they swirled around Kuran's hair . He'd hummed in satisfaction at some point , the sound disturbing a certain brunette to no end . Like he needed more unusual observations tossed into the equation .

Normally , Kiryuu would die before showing how much he enjoyed drinking blood , especially his . _So what the hell was wrong ?_

Even though he'd taken enough , the hunter kept feasting on the pureblood till he was sure the amount left would be enough for Kuran to walk and such but not fend for himself .

He knew the pureblood would follow him , curious about such mission . He knew Kuran must have already figured out the nature of it .

After all , a hunter of Zero Kiryuu's caliber would not be given a random mission . It must be a big one . And currently , there was only one suspect both races strove to capture .

Which meant anything could happen .

Kiryuu was a powerful and unique hunter yes but he was not impeccable . If something were to happen to him , yuki would be sad . Furthermore , there would be no one qualified enough to protect her should anything happen and Kaname was not there to do it himself .

Thus reaching a final conclusion , the pureblood decided to follow the said hunter . Just in case .

He planned to be there and watch from afar should any emergency arise , not realizing that he was playing right into Kiryuu's hands by doing so .

The hunter had already envisioned all of that and smirked wickedly against the pureblood's neck . He knew the brunette would not think twice about keeping him alive regardless of the consequences . He knew Kuran might even end up following him without regaining his energy - compensating for the lack of it by consuming some blood tablets - . which meant blood loss and a vulnerable kuran . _How appetizing !_

 _You are far too dependent on me , Kuran . And such will be your downfall ._


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer : I do not own vk , only the plot of this fic .**

 **Warnings : none .**

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Partly distracted and partly conceited , a certain pureblood chose to follow after a certain hunter who has just been feeding on him moments ago .

 _He took an awful lot this time ._ Kaname noted to himself distractedly , hissing as he rubbed a hand on his tender flesh that has started healing , albeit slowly , and was now in a condition that displeased him immensely , courtesy of one ungrateful Zero kiryuu .

Focusing on keeping himself sober , staying hyper aware of the hunter's every move without being close enough to arouse suspicions , the brunette sped up , melting in between the shadows of the trees concealing himself in the darkness of the night .

Even though he was masking his presence , he had a feeling that kiryuu might be able to sense him , if not by his hunter or vampire instincts then by his internal compass that only seemed to work by hatred .

Drowning in his own thoughts the more he kept a rhythm of such routine , alternating between teleporting , sneaking on branches and sometimes landing on the ground with unrivaled grace even in his rapidly worsening condition , the brunette male continued to follow the hunter . His vision had started to swim a long time ago but he paid that no heed , thinking he could handle that much .

Besides , something else screeched at his senses like a sense of doom settling heavily on his shoulders . If his guess was correct , kiryuu's target should be one of the fugitive nobles . And yet the more they delved deeper into the forest , kaname could not sense nor witness any sign of a third person there , no matter how much he strained his powers . There's just no way he would miss a noble's aura , scent and sheer presence even in his disoriented state . He was an ancestor after all . Even if the target kept in hiding masking its presence , he should be able to tell .

Still , keeping his crimson eyes trained on the hunter's distant figure , kaname was at loss . The way kiryuu sped had been precise and determined like he knew what to look for . How so ? Kaname could sense no level Es and no nobles . Something was off , that much he could tell . Was it a trap ? Was kiryuu being handed a nonexistent mission on purpose ? Or .. His lips curled down into a frown as he willed himself to stop , his steps grounding to an abrupt halt as he landed on a tree branch as light as a feather would , his silky tresses swaying ever so softly to the blow of the wind .

Now that he made no effort to move further , he could hear it all . The night hadn't been a peaceful one but that hardly bothered him .

Unconsciously , he squeezed his eyes shut , his powers traveling and falling like a blanket to encompass the entirety of the forest . He could hear multiple sounds , the rustle of the skeletal trees getting swayed by the gentle breeze that ended up carrying the fallen leaves in an endless journey when a powerful gust of wind made itself known . He could hear the owls whining like a person blowing a trumpet . Only one sound he had expected to hear was missing .

Kiryuu's footsteps .

Eyes snapping open at that , the pureblood refused to admit it but a part of him started to panic , especially as he noticed how accelerated and frantic his breathing had become along with his heartbeat . What was that feeling ? he nearly groaned in what could only be pain as his hand rose to grip on his head , hard .

A wave of pain throbbed and magnified in there .

Was that .. ?

Another one hit him and that time he did let out a choked groan .

What the hell ?

He staggered and had to lean on the bark of the tree , all the while panting heavily .

If his vision was swimming back then , now it was plunged into complete darkness .

What was happening ?

His power was leaving him at an alarming pace and he had no idea why .

That couldn't be good .

As if on cue , raw hunger struck him in the most vicious manner and that wasn't even the worst thing .

He realized , much to his displeasure , that he really could not summon any of his powers , no matter how diminutive .

In that state of his , he could not teleport back to Cross academy and he couldn't move on either .

he just hoped he would not end up fainting right then and there . And to avoid that , he slowly willed himself to move and thankfully landed on both feet on the ground below , though struggling as he did so . But he refused to acknowledge such thing . He persisted , choosing to fight his inexplicable state of delirium .

the pureblood king found himself forced in a situation where he was stripped of his pureblood powers and left hungry , almost on the verge of dying .

It's then that a familiar hunter appeared , smirking at his agony almost imperceptibly .

" How does it feel like , kuran ? My tainted blood , as you so delicately put it , is ironically the only thing capable of saving you now . " The silver haired male watched in immense satisfaction as those normally garnet but now scarlet eyes slowly met his own , with what seemed to be so much difficulty .

Zero had already established the fact his heart desired revenge and revenge he was going to get .

So far kuran has never failed to show much he was willing to go for yuki's sake and the silverette decided he was going to use it to his advantage and simply watched as the almighty pureblood had no option but to feed from him which meant a complete bond . Obviously it was part of the hunter's plan all along .

He knew seiren was away on a mission and could already tell that kuran would choose to follow him not bothering to make up for the lack of blood he'd lost earlier , blinded by his ego and thinking he was invincible . Well , he thought wrong and zero was there to prove just how much vulnerable the king could really be , much like a game of chess .

" I really don't want to be bonded to you for eternity , kuran . but if it means forcing you on something against your will , giving you a taste of your own medicine , playing with your destiny , then it's worth every moment of it . " The hunter announced as he inched closer to the pureblood slipping in out of consciousness on the bare ground of the forest . He let out a mocking scoff as he bent down inspecting the elder vampire and finally sat on the ground knowing very well how taunting such act would be . Kuran was thirsty and stripped of every single ounce of energy possible due to the potent charm the hunter had used on him earlier without the pureblood noticing .

Frankly speaking , Zero didn't think it would be that easy . But he supposed it was definitely because he'd considered every obstacle that could hinder his plan .

Slipping into his deceitfully innocent role , the pastel haired vampire reached a delicate hand nudging the worn out pureblood into a position where he could hold him .

Kuran was so gone that he didn't even show any sign of recognizing who the person before him was . The beast in him had been forcefully unleashed , freed from its cage and now wanted sustenance . Zero smiled at that , his gaze distant and crazed .

The hunter took no time pulling the brunette closer , so close until he knew the elder would not be able to fight the temptation any longer .

" It's okay . let loose all of the hunger you've been fighting all along .." the silverette paused , licking his lips and heaving a deep breath before adding

" you've been putting your monster on leash all those years . It must have hurt too bad , right ? "

kuran shook in his arms .

A chuckle . A melodious one that was meant to encourage .

In the same hypnotizing voice fit for a siren , the silverette coaxed " I know what it feels like . "

" Don't you think It's time you broke free , ha ? "

Tone soft and tender , Zero whispered an equally gentle series of words . Even his touch felt delicate as he continued to caress the pureblood's silky strands away from his neck . but his expression , the flicker in his eyes , was lethal , twisted and dark .

He loved the fact Kuran held onto him for dear life . He loved how the brunette seemed to convulse hating how the hunter touched him like he was fragile , like he was not worthy of a true fight .

It must have terribly offended the mighty pureblood , no doubt . He hated how every time he tried to pull away , kiryuu would simply hold him closer , tighter . Until he could do naught but give in . Ivory fangs shone in the dim light of the gloomy moon before instantly engraving themselves in the crook of the hunter's neck , drawing greedy and barbaric gulps of the sweet rich and fulfilling liquid that was Zero's blood . His fingers clutched , desperate and fearful of the moment his donor might push him away and leave back in that lust-driven void .

Ironically , Their position could easily be mistaken as a display of affection between long lost lovers when the truth was far from that , the farthest possible .

A couple of minutes dragged by . Kuran should be sated now . The bond should be a full one . And like a press of a finger on a piano key , the hunter let a crooked smile adorn his features as he knew what would ensue . Just according to his plan .

Zero watched , with emotionless eyes , as his victim dropped and went limp surrendering to the massive onslaught of body changes that overwhelmed him , finally resting on the hunter's figure who then proceeded getting up , carrying the passed out pure blood in his arms , mind lost in a haze .

He'd conjured up an image of his younger self , all alone , broken and lost .

 _You have tortured me as a child all of those years and still did so as I grew up .. Now it's time I return the favor ._

 _I will raise you up just like you did , with so much yet so little love and devotion , with precise calculation , With no mercy or consideration whatsoever ._

 _Though thinking back , you've sheltered me . ( As a result of your ill deeds and your greed , you eventually gave me a soothing home and a loving family .. A father .. And a sister .. ) But you robbed me of her in the blinking of an eye , kuran . And for that I can never forgive you_ .

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 **Author's note :**

I know the chapter is too short but I have cut the draft short deliberately . This chapter is written in a one-scene style . Call it sadistic of me to leave you with such cliff hanger but well I just felt like it . The rest of the draft would need another day or two to be finished and I missed updating this fic . Understood ? Couldn't resist updating .

It's been a long time maybe almost a year I know . Lots of stuff happened and still do .

But hopefully the next update will come out faster than expected because the draft is mostly finished .

Updated 8 july 2017 .


	6. Chapter 6

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A muffled sound of feet coming in contact with carpet resonated in kuran kaname's room as a certain hunter sneaked inside through the window , with the unconscious owner of the grand chamber in his arms . Zero needn't make sure to mask his presence or scent for that matter because the room was built with a generous amount of spells working like a barrier , preventing anyone from hearing , sensing or even smelling anything inside .

When he first found out why , the silver haired male ended up in a fit of silent rage at how spoiled kuran was . But then again he supposed it came with being a pureblood . Besides , he felt thoroughly grateful for it at the moment .

Sparing the still form in his arms a brief look , Zero found himself frowning as he shook his head in contempt before gazing at the bed where he lumped the pureblood bastard and wished him ' sweet dreams '

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 **Meanwhile at the moon dormitory hal l **

A certain toffee hair colored female sat back on the cozy sofa , eyes distant as she replayed the recent conversation she had with one Akatsuki kain . She was too lost in her own thoughts she didn't notice a hand reaching out from behind to retrieve a glass in the table in front of her until it was too last .

Ruka nearly let out a high pitched cry as she noticed just who exactly stood behind the sofa she was seated on .

The male in question only lifted an astonished eyebrow and pulled the glass of wine to his lips , all the while staring at her intently . The thing that made her feel thousand times uncomfortable . And sadly it did show on her face .

Rima , who had been sitting next to shiki on the same sofa , lifted one fine eyebrow at that , somehow still managing to look nonchalant as she gave the caramel haired female a knowing look that screamed ' I'm so gonna have fun teasing you about it later ' . After all , a flustered Ruka was not something you get to see everyday .

Not being able to stand the intense stare directed at her from two ginger haired nobles , Ruka focused all of her energy into appearing as calm as possible before abandoning the sofa and room altogether .

Sharp amber eyebrows shot up at that . The pastel orange haired male nodded to himself and chugged down the contents of the glass before excusing himself for the second time that night .

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Few minutes later :

All fresh and sated , certain blonde male has been walking towards the living room when he caught , from the corners of his eyes , the silhouette of one Ruka Souen , her aura distressed and unsettled .

The said female felt a faint tingle in the back of her mind , poking her senses and alerting her to a presence approaching .

Takuma sighed as he took a step closer to the caramel haired vampire . Both sufficed with the companionable silence that filled the atmosphere . Ruka wasn't a chatterbox and Takuma knew that . He could even relate to her in a way , at least now . He'd changed after all .

Deep inside , Ruka was battling against her own emotions . Why the hell did she feel that flustered awhile ago ? Why was she even spacing out recalling that prank Akatsuki had pulled on her ? What the hell did that accelerated beat of her heart mean ? What about her feelings for kaname-sama ? All of those emotions .. what to do with them ? She had no idea . Maybe it was about time she gave up on hopes of the pureblood looking at her in that way . Maybe it was about time she gave up on love .. It would not be fair to encourage Akatsuki's advances just because a part of her wanted to feel loved after being denied that feeling for a time far longer than was tolerable . Honestly , she was in no position to feel like a victim of love , not when she'd forced the same destiny on her cousin .. Though .. what if yuki's words were true ? What if Akatsuki didn't even love her anymore ? What if he'd gotten too used to rejection that her existence was nothing special in his eyes anymore ?

Takuma silently observed the female next to him . He could tell she was distressed and thus may have needed to talk but just as he was about to open his mouth to talk , he smelled it .

Emerald and toffee globes widened , alarmed and confused .

Eyebrows knitting in concern , both vampires rushed out of the veranda and to the next floor , not bothering to walk and instead teleporting to Hanabusa's room .

Ruka gasped as soon as she emerged and witnessed the terrifying sight before her eyes .

Her blonde cousin had fallen unconscious on the ground of the bathroom . Akatsuki was standing there , hands in midair as he stared into shock at the figure lying there almost lifelessly . Blood stained the floor and the toilet seat .

 _Did he threw up her blood_ ?

Before she could come up with an answer to that , her body lurched forward as she felt a violent shudder surge through her entire being followed by a stinging pain that had her groaning and staggering . Taken aback by everything , Takuma nearly missed the chance to support her body before she could crash to the unforgiving marble tiles .

" Ruka ! " The blonde noble exclaimed drawing Akatsuki 's attention .

It's in that moment that Shiki and Rima appeared , faces going through a series of changes , first shock then confusion and finally settling on concern .

 _What the hell was happening ?_

Akatsuki felt like he was watching a videotape recorded in slow motion as he witnessed the two people he cared about more than anything deteriorating right before his eyes , one lying unconscious in his arms and the other almost fainting . And the worst part was that he could do nothing about it .

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Next day :

A certain brown haired ancestor remained in bed for most of the time ever since that mishap . At first his mind recalled none of it . But then memories of the night before started hitting him out of nowhere rendering him speechless . He could not believe how he'd let himself be fooled like that and by who ? his own pawn . How the hell did he allow such thing to happen ?

The lord of darkness refused to believe the words of a Lowly level D . Kaname refused to acknowledge the fact he may have a bloodbond with kiryuu . The only bond tying them was a master/slave bond and will forever be that way .

Though thinking rationally , if it was true , he'd have to break it . But even that would end up ricocheting back , harming him in the most twisted of ways .

He'd have to get rid of the bond , assuming it existed , before it got stronger .

The fact he could have a bond with kiryuu did not surprise him . Bloodbonds require intense emotions to be present . And in that sense hatred was just as much as effective as love . Did kiryuu plan his revenge with the knowledge of that or was it merely a stroke of luck on his part ?

 _It didn't matter though_ , the brunette grimaced to himself . Either Ways , the final outcome was something he dreaded . And that was just one issue to stress over . Takuma had stopped by earlier , claiming an urgent matter needed to be discussed but the pureblood was not in the mood for anything and so ended up delaying it .

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The rest of the day progressed in a way that had everyone , humans , vampires and one silver haired hunter astonished .

It was time for class changeover when the bloodsuckers minus a certain Hanabusa Aido , as Zero still liked to put it , started making their way towards their class when a certain noble staggered , almost as if dizzy .

Zero , faster than the eyes could catch , leaned forward and supported the female's nobles body , drawing a symphony of gasps from most of the crowd , both races .

 _It had been an automatic reaction ._ He told himself while keeping a gentle but sure hold on Souen whose panting never ceased . Her breath quickened and tickled his throat .

His first reaction , for some reason , was finding the gaze of a certain kuran who , not surprisingly , had on his usual apathetic mask appearing to treat him like he always have , as if he didn't exist . He only ever existed in the pureblood's dictionary when it was convenient for him after all . Still , the hunter knew better . Kuran was simply caught up in the phase of denial . Zero would let him delude himself all he wanted . It's not like he was in a hurry .

Back to the situation at hand though .

Zero knew vampires don't get sick . They don't randomly faint either , unless it had to do with malnutrition . But the silverette knew the night class relied on blood tablets . That ruled out the possibility of it being a simple issue of undernourishment . It had to be something more critical and judging by the concerned looks pouring in his direction , he knew his assumption was close enough .

Speaking of which , never in a million years did he imagine that a day would come when he and Souen would be that close , physically . In fact , the last person he may have entertained the idea of ending up in such position with was the noble currently fading into unconsciousness in his arms . because of their proximity , his Superior inhuman senses caught on a certain detail . Her scent .. It was pleasant , not the overly exaggerated kind of scent that females usually radiated . It was almost soothing . Her heartbeat nearly blasted his eardrums . Her breath continued to shorten and tickle him along with her hair . She was going slack but that was not the worst thing .

When Souen struggled to open her eyes , zero widened his own ever so imperceptibly . Bloodlust . He thought with mild horror and no . Not because it triggered his memory of that baleful night . No . He was way past the point of hyperventilating over that trauma . The only thing that mattered to him was that a vampire was in bloodlust and the day class students were present .

He did the only thing he could think of fast enough and , gritting his teeth , Zero pulled the female closer to him hiding her face in his chest , earning an uproar of gasps that time around . Perhaps it wasn't the smartest thing to do , Zero grimaced never bothering to hide it , because now Souen was meshed against him , shivering as she took in the scent of his exquisite blood . Though maybe he would not mind her taking from him , if only to return the favor .

Souen Ruka wasn't as bad as she seemed . Zero thought in a mixture of indifference , gratitude and a tinge of sorrow that never really left him . The one time she defied kuran , Zero allowed the faintest semblance of a smile to form on his delicate lips as he recalled , was also the same one she'd shielded the hunter from the said pureblood . Bizarre , right ?

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She was already teetering on the edge and needed only a push to fall unconscious . So the hunter helped her . Those candy pink lips of his parted ever so slowly as he chanted a series of letters lulling the said female into an instant slumber , while being careful enough to make it seem like she simply passed out .

A certain pureblood princess stood still , dazed and confused , watching the whole thing with observant eyes .

 _Did Zero just fix his gaze on her brother , for the briefest of moments_ ? It may have been so fast but it was definitely intentional , she could tell . Why though ?

And why was Kaname projecting such an aura ? What the hell just happened ? She had been filled in on the recent mishap involving Aidou and Ruka but never imagined things could get that disastrous .

She didn't hate the caramel haired noble , okay ! True they never got along but that was only because the said female refused to let go of the past . Yuki was then snapped out of her thoughts when a movement from behind caught her attention .

 _Akatsuki kain ._

" I will take it from here , kiryuu . "

After a silent moments of maintaining intense eye contact , the amber haired vampire spared no time collecting his unconscious cousin from the silver haired hunter's arms .

" If I may be excused , kaname-sama . " Kain spun on his heels and held the female closer to him as he spoke up , whispering the last part so as not to draw unwanted attention from the day class students and at the same time knowing the brunette would have no troubles catching it .

' Wild senpai ' only proceeded towards the moon dormitory after receiving a nod of approval from the said pureblood .

" What ? Your first time seeing a girl faint ? " The hunter calmly asked . though it felt more like a warning to the crowd of day class students compelling them to disperse .

It didn't take long before the night class proceeded towards their destination almost as if nothing had happened .

The day class students were in a state of confusion , some whispering among themselves wondering if Aido- senpai was sick or something . And other murmuring about Ruka fainting on Kiryuu and already coming to conclusions that those might be in a secret relationship . The hunter in question , unfortunately for them , just so happened to be a vampire as well and could hear everything perfectly clear .

" Did you not hear me ? I said go back to your dorms ! " That time he yelled , effortlessly making the girls screech in fear and run for their lives , obeying his command .

After a minute or so , the place was devoid of anyone aside from the two prefects .

Sayori wakaba , the current female prefect and yuki's ex best friend gave him a questioning look , silently asking ' what the hell happened earlier '

But he just spun on his heels , totally ignoring her . He had nothing against the girl . He might have even enjoyed her company but there was a limit to what she ought to know about . And really , with what she already knew of , it was enough . She needn't involve herself more with him or them . He was beginning to see why Yuki started to avoid her after awakening .

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 **A\N**

 **2364 words**

 **updated 15 july 2017**


	7. Chapter 7

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Akatsuki had a hand clasped over his mouth as he reclined further in his seat , eyes fixated on his female cousin , still unconscious and terrifyingly pale , which did so little to ease his anxiety .

It pained him to see her like that , so much he found himself resisting the urge to caress her face and brush away those caramel strands from her forehead .

He may have established the fact he loved her no more . But , apparently , it was nothing but a massive lie he told himself in hopes of believing it .

Ruka mattered to him more than anything or anyone , as she always had . He would not think twice before extending a helping hand to her . But at that moment , he didn't know what to do for her . Hell , he didn't even understand what the problem was .

First it was Hanabusa and no-

Eyes widening at the thought , the ginger haired noble jolted back into a straight position , mind reeling with realization .

His blonde cousin has gotten injured , clawed by a level E . After which , he attacked Ruka , seemingly lost in a haze of bloodlust . And a while later , he ended up throwing it all up . Not a minute later , the female started fainting and looking as though she caught a fever or something .

It couldn't have been a coincidence . Hanabusa had to have been poisoned . And when he bit Ruka , he ended up passing it to her .

It was still an assumption but Akatsuki had a feeling it might very well be the case .

There was only one way to be certain of it . He'd have to let Hanabusa bite him and see if it occurs again .

It would be risky , possibly deadly , he knew . but it was all he had .

What worried him though was confirming his suspicions .

If Hanabusa's system , for some reason , continues to refuse blood after a while of drinking from whoever , then he'd never feel sated enough to survive and to make it worse , his donors would end up in a condition no better than him , if he were to bite them .

They'd have to think of a way to treat that poison , if there existed any .

He'd never heard of Level Es possessing poisonous claws though .

What the hell was going on ?

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Kaname's poker face betrayed nothing of his thoughts or emotions . Deep inside , he was infuriated beyond limits , to the point he couldn't stop thinking about the ugly pile of mess a certain hunter had hurled at him . And yet he thought that distracting himself with another crisis might be the best course of action at the moment .

He had firm beliefs that any problem had a solution , no matter how long it might take to discover . And he was willing to wait . In the meantime , he would focus on the bright side , manipulating the situation to his liking .

He could just scoff at the whole game . Kiryuu had immense confidence it would go in his favor . But Kaname was going to crush such foolish plan , and take pleasure in it .

It would forever be a mystery to him , how the silverette could inspire a certain feeling of guilt in him and at the same time do the one thing few were capable of , getting on his nerves .

Back then , he did find it astounding for a lesser vampire , a level D , the lowest class possible to be able to bare his fangs at him and openly defy his commands , his powerful and compelling aura . Even when he gave him his blood , it never seemed to change any of it . But maybe it was about to change .

If being of higher authority didn't work , then maybe being his "mate" would .

Kiryuu's game would end up firing back against him , Kaname could already see it happening .

After all , if being a mate didn't give him privileges then what would ?

The hunter had naively and unconsciously given him carte blanche , a right and a claim on him .

Unbeknownst to the said pureblood , a devilish smirk found its way to his lips and unfortunately for him , Yuki chose that moment to inspect his expression , discreetly . He still noticed her eyes on him and in one swift and graceful gesture , his face smoothed back into perfection , as if he'd never moved his lips in the first place .

The pureblood princess curled her lips to the side , feeling a little bit suspicious , before wrenching her gaze away and to the empty seat on her right , where Hanabusa should be sitting .

Her eyebrows furrowed as she drowned in waves of doubts and observations . A lot has happened earlier , perhaps too much for her to keep up with . Everyone was not making sense . Zero was acting especially different , so unlike himself in a way that tugged at her heartstrings . Kaname's case wasn't any better . her brother had gotten even more mysterious , if that was possible .

As if that wasn't bad enough , they still had no idea what the hell was happening with Hanabusa and Ruka .

Yuki had one word for the current circumstances , chaos .

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An hour after class came to an end , a certain noble excused himself for a walk . He was hoping to have a talk with a certain prefect .

Takuma inhaled deeply as he lifted his gaze to the above blanket , a mirror of the ocean at night , slightly embellished with sparkling dots here and there .

It may have been rude of him , to ignore whatever disaster was taking place in the moon dorm and leave in search of a certain silverette . but he really couldn't keep the curiosity at bay any more .

If relief and fortune had a particular color , then it would the one reflected in his crocodile green pools once they landed on the person he wanted to meet , sitting down and leaning on a tree , looking as though he didn't sense his presence which Takuma knew was not the case . the blonde male had chosen that moment to gaze around him when he sensed the hunter after all . Kiryuu may have noticed his presence earlier though . Takuma doubted the silverette had a lot in mind enough to hinder him from sensing a vampire nearby .

The hunter did and said nothing when Takuma strode to him , getting closer and finally sat down next to him .

For a couple of minutes , neither spoke up , both of them taking comfort in the peaceful silence , the hushed breeze gusting past them , the rustle of trees and the relative serenity nighttime provided .

It stayed like that for another 5 minutes or so until Takuma found himself telling the hunter about the oddity that had him and other vampires in perplexity .

Such incidents ought to stay inside the confines of the moon dormitory . the blonde haired male knew but at that point he found it okay , more than okay actually , to break the rules , to disregard the boundaries .

Takuma couldn't care less . the realization should have astonished him . But it didn't .

Besides , Zero was no enemy . With all the variety of pure blood running in his veins , he was more of a vampire than a hunter . Though obviously , the blonde did not approach the silverette with only the intention of talking about the mystery behind Ruka and Aido's condition . And he could tell that zero knew what lied beneath the surface .

" Why did you want her memories ? Preferring not to beat around the bush any longer , Takuma inquired , unable to refrain from asking the same question that has been haunting him ever since the lesser vampire bit him that time .

He was met with a silence he'd predicted and was this close to giving up on receiving any answers until the silverette whispered , as if talking to himself .

" Before she died , shirabuki left something very important behind ."

Takuma raised an eyebrow at that and waited for more .

The hunter heaved a deep sigh before standing up and walking away , hands in pockets and expression thoughtful , laced with a forlorn undertone before adding rather vaguely " a purpose . "

The noble felt the crease on his forehead deepening as he heard that . he wanted to ask further but for some reason , the words died on his tongue . He had a feeling that was the closet he'd ever get to receiving an answer for his question.

 _To get involved or not_ .

Honestly , he had gotten enough drama in the past few years .

Fabricated or not , his feelings for her were too deep to be ignored or forgotten even if she herself has long left this world .

He has started to believe that his emotions were not a result of her manipulation , contrary to what everyone else perceived .

 _you maybe dead , Sarah . but your mark will forever linger and I promise you I will do my best to understand the rest of your story_ .

Something urged him to not sit back and watch this time . If it had to do with her then he would definitely get himself involved in it as well .

Diamond can only admit defeat to another .

The analogy may be overused but , to him , she was much the same as a jewel , a porcelain doll made from finest diamonds .

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 **A/N :**

1553 words according to fanfiction editor , nowhere near my (now) usual word count . But well , let's see if this short update would inspire some questions or ideas from you guys . I already have one scene planned in the next chapter . Half a loaf better than no bread . Ideas , people ! I would appreciate that .

Any ways , I don't want to keep this on the shelf any longer . Hence , the fact I ended up working on this update and magically , finished it in the same session . I already had a vague idea that the first scene would be Akatsuki's pov and the second would be yuki's , mostly . But the moment I started writing , The random kaname pov popped up in my head . I'd say it's cool that I could write that much , considering how I didn't expect to update today or any soon .

The Takuma and Zero scene was written a long time ago though .

So yup . this is the " first draft " . I left no days to wait and see if I would get inspired for more lines .

Written just now , updated just now .

4 Oct , 2017 .

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	8. Chapter 8

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The moon shone through transparent curtains as Zero sat on bed , vacant depths of violet staring ahead , unseeing , for he was far too lost in thoughts to focus on his surroundings . It wasn't the beautiful halo gracefully claiming the throne of the skies that he saw . It wasn't the outlines of the curtains either , or the frame of his windows . All he could see , hear and think of was a certain familiar voice whispering sweetly to him , urging him to rest and sleep because everything was going to be okay .

Something about it felt too familiar and yet , he couldn't put his fingers on what exactly .

So , ignoring that voice , he decided to go over his plan once more .

Was there any plot-holes ? he hoped not .

Did he regret it ? Did he feel any kind of sympathy or hesitation ?

The hunter shook his head and merely smiled at that . Maybe a week earlier , he would have felt a tinge of remorse . But unfortunately for Kuran , the angel residing in Zero had long been corrupted and tainted , any ounce of purity crushed beyond repair .

Nothing and no one was going to stop that game of revenge , not even Zero himself . His morals and self-control were no longer intact to prevent him from the dark seed of terrible desire .

 _A day has passed_ . He told himself .

Kuran must have had enough time to think of how he was going to retaliate . There was no doubt that he would try and twist the situation to his advantage . He would try to use the bond against him , in the most sickening of ways . Zero wouldn't put it past him . And yet even that didn't stop him from seeking revenge .

He knew that evil begets evil .

He knew that it would never bring his parents or ichiru back , nothing could . He knew that it may never give him the satisfaction he so desperately wished to feel in the end . It would not give him inner peace. And yet he couldn't imagine a future that he didn't seek revenge in .

Without it , his existence meant nothing , for it has become his sole anchor , his only purpose.

Too much darkness sneaked its way to his heart and blinded his rationale . Too much hatred ..

Though 'hatred' was too gentle of a word to describe the intensity of his blazing emotions .

A field comprised of innocence , purity on one side and the extreme opposite on the other .

You know when people put ingredients that don't go well together in the same pot , creating a meal that nobody could look at without having an urge to throw up . To make everything worse , they leave it to rot .

That's exactly how he felt .

A total failure .. A rotten one at that .

He still had a hard time believing that if it weren't for Kuran freeing Shizuka , the female pureblood wouldn't have had a chance to plot revenge , to meet ichiru and corrupt his soul . And thus , the kiryuu massacre wouldn't have happened .

All he could do was blink , once , twice , before finally closing his eyes , welcoming an all too familiar world of darkness , focusing on the rise and fall of his own chest , the rhyme of his heartbeat and the merciless cold beginning to invade his senses .

Numb . he felt numb .

His lips curled to the side , a broken semblance of a smile , resigned and full of longing .

Oh how he missed the way his mother called him and ichiru for dinner .

The way his father complemented how fast he'd improved his skills as a hunter .

The way ichiru clung to him like a sweet koala bear .

Before the dam could break free , He tossed around , unable to handle those memories , feeling something wet escape his eyes and cross the bridge of his nose before falling on the mattress , dampening it in the process .

Not a single noise could be heard . Not an occasional sniff left his mouth . No frown marred his face . Not even a knit formed between his eyebrows .

If it weren't for the tears gushing down his face , no sign existed to prove him crying .

The palm of his right hand and back of his left one faced the ceiling as he silently mourned , vaguely aware of the soft voice coming back , pulling him into a warmth he hadn't felt in so long . Finally reaching his limit , feeling vulnerable , he allowed that familiar voice to lull him into a much needed sleep .

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Despite having finished her prefect duties , sayori wakaba wandered about the school grounds , unconsciously getting closer and closer to the moon dormitory when she noticed the silhouette of someone approaching her .

From that distance though and because of the dark , She couldn't tell if it was a male or a female .

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Meanwhile , a certain brown haired pureblood sat in his office , mind occupied with the same issue that kept plaguing it as of late .

What made kiryuu think of revenge now ?

Generally speaking , the hunter despised purebloods .

But he'd always known about kaname being one .

He'd known , from the first time they met .

That couldn't be the cause of it .

He'd always known that kaname used him as a pawn , a knight in his game of chess , a shield to protect yuki and rid him of Rido .

So what has changed ?

The only missing piece in the puzzle that had the power to garner such reaction from kiryuu , to inspire such change in him , was the truth behind the kiryuu family tragedy .

Did he find out ?

How so ?

Noone in kaname's innercircle knew about it , not even Takuma .

The only two souls who knew were kaname himself and Shizuka .

Did she perhaps disclose it to kiryuu before dying ?

If so , then why hadn't he done anything about it earlier ?

Unless ..

Unless a third person knew all along and told kiryuu . Or did he purposely choose to wait ?

Whatever !

Seething , the kuran ancestor growled deeply in sheer displeasure .

There was a small chance that kiryuu still knew nothing about kaname being involved and was just seeking revenge for the past .

But for some reason , kaname had a feeling that wasn't the case . However , since kiryuu showed no clear sign that he knew , kaname would not be one to blow his own cover .

If kiryuu truly knows , though .. What's he planning to do with such knowledge , beside taking revenge of course .

Was he going to share it with yuki ?

Kaname loathed to admit it but he didn't want her to know ..

A coward , afraid she would leave him if she knew .. Kiryuu might say that .

Ashamed ? ..

Maybe .

Kaname didn't exactly know which was more of the case but he only knew that the last thing he wanted was for yuki to hear about it from kiryuu .

Before he could delve further into such thoughts , Kaname sensed one of the nobles outside . A minute later , a knock on the door could be heard .

Eyebrows furrowing ever so slightly , the pureblood registered a hint of confusion and curiosity coursing through his being at that . Nonetheless , he waited for a moment before granting Kain permission to enter .

The flame hair colored noble rarely had something to discuss with him . And in those rare times , it was always about Aido . The moron had better discipline himself .

Kaname dearly wished whatever the noble came to say had nothing with Aido because he truly was not in the mood for that .

" Dorm president kuran , Hanabusa is missing ."

" What ? " He questioned calmly , aura flaring up even more , if that was possible .

Aside from the instant frown taking over the pureblood's features , no hint existed to portray his irritation and displeasure .

The ginger haired noble just waited for permission , more like command to go and search for his ever so troublesome cousin .

" Look for him !" In a low voice that could put silk to shame and rival the sharpness of a legendary sword , kaname instructed , intimidation seeping into his tone .

Akatsuki didn't have any difficulty guessing the rest of that order .

He could already hear an echo of something that hasn't even been uttered .

 _And bring him back , as quietly as possible_ .

His foolish cousin , despite being a genius , has always gotten himself in such unnecessary dilemmas , with the one pureblood he nearly worships .

But this time , everything felt a thousand times more critical .

And by the look of it , Kuran wasn't in one of his ' generous ' moods . All in all , Hanabusa has really fucked up this time , intentionally or not .

Heaving out a frustrated sigh , Akatsuki dashed his way out of the moon dormitory , tracing his cousin's aura .

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After Kain left the room , Kaname remained in his chair for a while , expression speaking volumes of the boiling irritation he felt , face resting on his right fist until he exhaled deeply and stood up , abandoning his office and making his way towards the windows .

He might have accompanied Akatsuki , if he was in a better mood .

The blood surging through his veins was a mixture of his own and kiryuu's .

How disturbing!

He'd given the ungrateful hunter his own blood and as if going through a loop , he fed from kiryuu a while later .

He didn't exactly remember details but something kiryuu had said still rang in his head , buzzing there like a hammer .

 _'My tainted blood , as you so delicately put it , is ironically the only thing capable of saving you now '_

If it weren't for kiryuu ..

No . No . Kaname shook his head vehemently at that .

He'd never allow himself to even think that he owed kiryuu .

The despicable hunter did not save him !

If it weren't for kiryuu , he would have still survived .

Yes , he would have .

If anything , if it weren't for his own ego and blinding confidence , none of that would have happened .

He refused to believe that the driving factor was kiryuu ..

No , the hunter could not influence a pureblood's destiny .

It wasn't because of kiryuu being smart or more powerful , it was only because kaname himself hadn't been cautious enough .

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Akatsuki was about ready to snap when he saw his blonde cousin sitting with a human , the new female prefect . If his memory served him right , that girl was princess Yuki's best friend .

He was not foolish not to go and ask for permission from Kuran . No . He could have sneaked his way out of the dorm and began searching for his cousin without getting both of them into trouble . But he knew if he were to get caught walking about the school ground past curfew , things would only get worse for him and his worrisome cousin of course .

Shaking his head , he chose to stride towards the two , putting on his most dissatisfied expression .

Before he could get too close , Hanabusa stopped chatting with the girl and turned his head in the elder's direction , having the guts to look confused .

" Akatsuki ? "

" I'm only going to say this once . Get back to your room now . " The words came out harsher than intended , leaning more towards a patronizing command , the exact opposite of what Akatsuki meant to do .

And the offended look Hanabusa gave him just proved it . The younger hadn't done anything wrong . he didn't even venture deeper towards the sun dormitory . He hadn't attacked Yori or anything .

He may have gotten his cousin into a lot of problems , but that didn't give the elder the right to boss him around .

feeling his mood taking a turn for the worst , the blonde male turned his face to look at the girl , smiled at her and said " Yori-chan , I will see you tomorrow . "

Not exactly thrilled at the tense atmosphere and yet knowing when to interfere and not to , Yori nodded softly before excusing herself .

Once he was sure they were alone , Hanabusa stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets , almost glaring at his cousin .

" Akatsuki , as much as I appreciate your concern , I didn't ask for it . You don't have to worry about me anymore .. I'm no longer a child . I can bear the consequences of my own actions . Besides , I'm feeling much better ."

The elder felt his eyes twitch at that . But he curbed the urge to smack his silly cousin because whatever he said was not okay .

Instead , he found himself asking " What do you mean better ? "

the younger could only roll his eyes and sigh before explaining " When I woke up , I tried my luck with bloodtablets and they worked . About an hour has passed and I didn't throw up . I guess whatever I came down with was temporary . "

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A day/night later :

Zero didn't know why , but for some reason , he found himself going back to the same place where he last dropped Shirabuki's necklace , as if drawn to it like magnet .

Maybe he wanted to keep it as a trigger , a reminder , so his determination would not waver .

 _As if that could happen_ .

With a shake of his head , he bent down , scanning the grass for that sterling silver rose pendant .

His job wasn't going to be an easy one though , especially because of the pendant being both transparent and tiny .

Still , he was going to find it even if he had to spend most of the day looking for it . Later , he was going to reward himself by having some fun taunting Kuran .

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Takuma was surprised , for the lack of a better word , when he opened the front door of the moon dormitory , only to find himself staring at none other than Kiryuu . He could already feel the hunter's aura before but chose not to believe it .

 _What brings you here ?_ He was itching to ask . surely the hunter was not stupid enough to seek him there , of all places .

However , Kiryuu wasn't there to talk to him , as it turned out .

The hunter had clearly stated he had business to discuss with 'Kuran' .

Before Takuma could say anything , Zero was already making his way upstairs , only stopping when the object of his grudge appeared before his eyes .

" And here I was asking myself where that horrid stench came from ." Calm , collected and regal would best depict the pureblood's tone . But Zero could already feel the underlying threat nearly stabbing him like a dagger would . If he didn't understand the words directed at him , he would have mistook it for a romantic confession . The bastard was a damn good actor . But it was all going to change , the hunter smirked devilishly at that .

Kuran was dressed in a black button up shirt that exposed his 'royal' neck , and beige dress pants , painting a picture of ethereal beauty , art of deception at its finest .

" Aren't you going to invite me to your office ? " Disregarding the mocking remark , Zero spoke up in a manner no less sarcastic , making a show of gazing at the elder with a fake glint of shyness .

In response to that , Kuran wrinkled his features and nearly barked " Speak here , kiryuu and make it fast . I don't feel like dignifying your presence with such an invitation . "

Face splitting into a wicked grin , Zero took a step closer before promising " Maybe not now , but you will , later . "

In a deliberate show of provocation , the hunter slowly roamed his eyes all over the pureblood , faking infatuation as he reached forward and patted Kuran's chest before adding " After all , you might as well start getting used to my presence here , bond-mate . "

Incensed beyond limit , Kaname felt his nose flare up as he clutched the hand on his chest and squeezed it painfully , eyebrows shooting up for a moment as he growled the words out " You may have forced me into a bond . but I'm still the pureblood here . " Kaname stated hatefully , hinting the fact he would die before submitting to the hunter .

Totally ignoring the dull pain , Zero merely smiled before whispering " We'll see about that , Kuran . You may be a pureblood but you are a vampire just like all of us are . "

Kaname had gotten surprised , though not terribly as he heard the silverette admit the fact he fought so long to deny , his being a vampire . Instead of showing how such thing astonished him though , the brunette disregarded those words and retorted back , growing furious without even realizing it , his hold on the hunter's hand tightening in the process .

" You underestimate me .. A mere bond would not be enough to shake my self-control . "

His voice may have been calm and emotionless , like it usually was , but a hint of burning aggravation was starting to seep into it .

Zero smirked knowingly at that , satisfied with the sight before his eyes .

" That is what makes this all the more fun and interesting. I hate getting bored because I won too quickly ."

Before the pureblood could respond to that , a shrill cry resounded about , startling both of them , especially because it was accompanied with a Level E aura .

Neither wasted time and in a flash , both of them were standing in front of Yuki's room , with Kaname almost bumping into her as she darted forward , narrowly avoiding a claw directed at her face .

The grand chamber looked like a tornado went through it . The bed covers were ripped apart along with the pillows , pieces of fabric and feathers littered the floor .

Kaname's eyes widened as he recognized the reason why .

Ruka ..

The noble lunged forward , as if programmed to attack anything that moved . But before she could reach them , Kaname commanded her to stop , employing his position as a pureblood .

What ensued was both , good and bad .

The good thing was that it did stop her . However , it also looked like she was struggling against two sides , one of which felt the instinctive need to obey and the other wanted to break free .

The inner conflict she suffered seemed to exhaust her , physically and mentally and the other three could only watch in horror as the noble cried out in pain , scratching her own face , unable to snap out of it .

Frowning the deepest in that morbid day , Kaname could only take Yuki further in his embrace , wanting to help but too confused and shocked to do anything . A pureblood's command proved to do more harm than good . What the hell was he supposed to do to subdue Ruka without hurting her ?

For a couple of minutes , no one dared move until Kaname caught , from the corner of his eyes , Kiryuu getting closer to the female noble .

The pureblood almost parted his lips to yell a protest but was interrupted when Zero only pried Ruka's claws away from her face and slowly , she seemed to get back to her senses , but only for a second .

In the blinking of an eye , She had Kiryuu on the floor as she straddled him and almost clawed him to pieces . But the hunter was faster flipping their positions and pinning her arms down , finally bellowing at her , exerting his dominance in a wolf-like manner.

He didn't expect it to work but it did . And before Ruka could recover from the initial shock , part her lips and shriek back , he silenced her with another authoritative roar , much the same as a lion's . The noble was given no chance to do anything when the next thing she knew , was someone chanting in her ears , before everything went black .

For the second time in a very short span of time , Zero found himself carrying an unconscious Souen , partly satisfied by the fact even Kuran could do nothing about it .

The two purebloods , on the other hand , watched in barely concealed fascination as the silver haired hunter tamed the level E-like Ruka in mere seconds , without causing her any harm .

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 **A while later :**

Zero sat in a chair by Souen's bed , keeping watchful eyes on her .

He'd never seen such a horrifying scene . From what he'd heard , Aido has gotten himself injured in a recent mission and ended up feeding from the female noble . for some odd reason , he couldn't keep her blood and finally threw it up before fainting on his male cousin's arms and at the same time , Souen ended up losing consciousness as well , like she was mirror reflecting whatever happened to Aido .

However , about a day later Hanabusa started feeling better , which consequently applied to Souen as well .

Everyone chose to disregard that case as a fleeting effect of the injury until Ruka started exhibiting violent tendencies .

It seemed that the possibility of Hanabusa getting poisoned still stood . What Akatsuki had initially feared was , in fact , true .

There was only one explanation that Zero could think of . That poison resembled a virus that took different forms as time passed by , developing through a series of stages . the first stage made the host throw up whatever blood they drank , and the second one caused them a split personality , making them behave like a level-E , except for one thing , a pureblood's command had no effect on them .

What troubled him was how dangerous such thing proved to be . they had no idea what more could happen because of that poison or virus or whatever it was . Did it have other stages ? Or had the worst already happened ?

Developing a cure was sure going to take a very long time which they couldn't afford to waste .

If Ruka behaved like that again , then they could safely call it episodes taking place every once in a while .

The only solution , Zero thought , was to inject both nobles with a virus stronger or just as strong as the first one .It has to be a poison they are familiar with though .

Using a weaker one would be pointless Whereas an equally powerful one would make the two poisons battle and destroy each other . If the second happened to be stronger , they'd just have to cure it .

In any case , that wasn't the real thing worrying him , rather the question of how the hell such thing was possible .

How the hell did an injury caused by a Level E do that ? Were they even normal level Es ? Of course not .

Was it some sort of an evolution ? or was it intended ? If someone out there was experimenting on level Es to have such results , then .. from now onward , things would just keep on getting worse .

" Kiryuu . "

The hunter blinked back into reality at that . He turned his head to the right , facing a certain noble that had been sitting on a chair next to him this whole time without saying much .

" Something is bugging me . " Kain confessed as he leaned forward and crossed his fingers , barely filtering the annoyance from his tone .

Zero only reclined further in his chair , appearing nonchalant and oddly comfortable , for someone who hated nothing more than vampires .

" Why is it that every time Ruka needs help , you happen to be present ? "

It took everything in the hunter not to burst into laughter right then and there .

Gathering the chuckle threatening to leave his mouth , he focused on changing it into a sinister smile before tossing the noble a response meant to rile him up " I don't know . Fate ? "

The look on Kain's face was priceless , too much that Zero actually scoffed in satisfaction that time .

" Relax . I'm not the one enamored with her . "

The noble looked thoroughly scandalized that time and Zero enjoyed every moment of it .

 _Oh he could get used to that_ .

Deciding he had enough fun for one day , Zero stood up and made to leave when a certain question halted him

" Why are you helping her ? Or are you just doing your job eliminating any chance of a vampire endangering humans ? "

Silence took over the room at that . the thing that had Akatsuki stunned beyond belief . Why was Kiryuu hesitating ?

He'd die before helping a vampire , especially one of Kuran's inner circle . So why was he doing the exact opposite ? A way of making the pureblood owe him ?

Despite it being obvious that he might not receive an answer , the noble still waited for one .

And when he finally heard it , nothing but surprise showed on his face .

" The answer to that even I don't know . "

The sound of the door being eased open and softly closed filled the silence encompassing the room as soon as the hunter said those words .

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4137 words ( medium length ) I sometimes reach 6000+ words and the longest I have written was 10,000+ words .

Updated 8 Oct , 2017 . IKR so soon ! which is why I don't think I will be updating any soon .

I dearly wish that you guys enjoy this chapter and excuse any typos .

Love you all ~


	9. Chapter 9

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" Yuki , would you be a dear , do me a favor , calm down and come sit here ." Kaname urged in that velvet voice of his as he pointed to the place next to him on bed .

His 'sister' had been pacing back and forth ever since they stepped a foot inside his room .

Ruka's outburst must be the reason .

He could understand why it would make yuki feel unsettled . He himself was having a hard time processing the whole ordeal . But he also knew that allowing himself to stress over it would not solve anything . It would , in fact , make everything worse .

They needed to calm down and think instead of panicking .

In his case , however , he didn't need to exert much effort or lock himself in a room to analyze everything without a chance of getting distracted .

None of it had been a coincidence . Someone out there was experimenting on Level Es , possibly intending to build an army capable of turning even nobles to the lowest class in the vampire society . the fact those nobles do not listen to a pureblood's command made everything a million times more bizarre than it already was .

What would happen to a pureblood though ? Would the virus work ?

What would happen to a human ?

A hunter ? A vampire-turned hunter ?

Whoever standing behind such dangerous plot should not be taken lightly . No one should be taken lightly . Only a fool would underestimate his opponent , regardless of the facts . The male pureblood learned that the hard way . If he hadn't ruled out the possibility of Kiryuu scheming against him , he wouldn't have been forced on a bloodbond with the insolent brat .

Kaname gritted his teeth at that , the action going by unnoticed . The female pureblood could think of and pay attention to nothing other than the fact it might have been her fault .

Even though she'd heard him , Yuki still found herself pacing around , cracking her fingers distractedly before finally slowing down and doing as told , wordlessly falling on bed , as if her body had been strained of energy all of a sudden and could do naught but succumb to gravity .

When she was finally sitting next to him , the kuran princess frowned , recalling what happened earlier .

Yuki parted her lips to say the truth , but then hesitated , not knowing if whatever theory she came up with made sense . The action repeated itself a few times . Still , Kaname waited for her , deciding not to pressure his 'sister' when she seemed to be caught in a state of conflict as it was .

It felt like forever before yuki finally found her voice back , a hint of bravery peppering her tone with each word she spoke .

" It was my fault .. I think I have triggered that reaction from her . "

The kuran ancestor just furrowed his eyebrows and curled his lips to the side in response to that , silently urging her to explain .

Yuki took a moment to gather her thoughts , inwardly noting how exquisitely furnished the room was , bathed in a blend of dark and light colors , giving off a vibe considerably darker than hers .

She absently wondered if it was done on purpose .

That's not the point though . she reminded herself before admitting " I wanted us to get along , to turn a new page ." she paused for a moment to gaze at him before darting her eyes to a blank spot , and finally adding " So when I noticed that she got better , I told her I would be waiting in my room . No matter what , she couldn't say no to that and well , at first I began asking her if she was feeling well .. It was an awkward conversation but at least it was going smooth until I said something that might have angered , if not offended her . And then she started breathing heavily , as if trying to control her rage , but in the end , she couldn't . "

Kaname said and did nothing as yuki narrated everything . There was no reason for him to ask about why his sister felt the need to turn a new page with Ruka . The two girls did not get along for obvious reasons that everyone knew of .

It was not surprising that yuki would want to mend that strained relationship . She'd always been like that , never feeling comfortable with the idea of making enemies rather than friends . And he had to admit , he would always find her persistence in that matter quite admirable .

But it was not the time to marvel at yuki's beautiful heart . If what she said was true then ..

Before he could finish the thought , Seiren's presence made itself known .

His 'shadow' kneeled down in respect , coupling the action with an honorific of his and yuki's name .

" Yuki . you did well informing me . But for now I want you to go and rest until it's time for class . The maids have arranged a temporary room for you until the actual one gets restored to it's original condition . " Kaname's suggestion was equal parts considerate and compelling , much the same as the way he briefly squeezed her hand , the mere touch meaning a lot .

Despite finding his actions heartwarming , the female pureblood knew it was a rather cunning way to keep her from listening to whatever Seiren was going to report .

but she chose to ignore it and instead of insisting to stay , she merely gave him an obedient nod that she followed with a weak smile before excusing herself , all the while wondering what information the silver haired female would be relaying .

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As soon as yuki left the room , Kaname stood up and made his way to the office situated in the far corner of the spacious chamber , already knowing that Seiren would take the hint and follow him .

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Meanwhile , Zero planned to take a nap next to white lily , to kill the time until class changeover , the bane of his existence .

He was peacefully lying on hay when the said mare started nuzzling his face , nickering in displeasure at the terrible scent coating her favorite human's breath .

Zero could only chuckle at that .

At first he was confused by her action until it dawned on him .

He'd attempted to vent some of his stress into smoking right before walking to the stables .

It was not a good thing but recently , he'd started developing a routine of consuming at least one cigarette a day .

The silver haired hunter merely smiled as he closed his eyes and listened to White lily's dissatisfied neighs , finding the notion of her complaining about his newly acquired tobacco scent oddly hilarious .

For a moment everything was peaceful and beautiful , gradually pulling him into a well of relaxation until he heard a voice echo in his head .

 _You should stop smoking before you get addicted_.

That's probably just the tiny part remaining in my conscience . Zero told himself , refusing to think much of it .

But when the voice started giggling , the action causing a certain sensation to build up in the hunter's body , Zero started freaking out .

" What the actual fuck ?! " He snapped , abruptly jolting all the way into a sitting position , surprising the clueless mare with his actions .

Was he finally going insane ?

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Sunset : Class changeover :

When the day class students saw no sign of certain three night class students , chatter filled the sky , with the first reaction being surprise bordering on shock and then curiosity until they finally settled on complaining , petulantly , in Zero's humble opinion .

Yori tried to ignore her growing concern over a certain blonde haired vampire , choosing to focus on keeping the day class students in line instead .

Zero , on the other hand , tried to play nice , , stay cool and cut the crazy fangirls and boys some slack . he really did . But they were practically asking for it .

" Hey . " The girls whispered among themselves , completely oblivious to the fact Zero could hear everything they said , clearly .

" Did you see that ? " one of them questioned in a low voice , seemingly amused at something .

" You mean kiryuu's searching gaze ? Do you think he's looking for Souen ? " Another girl asked back , barely refraining from jumping up and down in absolute excitement .

Zero would never understand why girls have such wild imagination .

Did they seriously think he liked Souen ? And why were they even observing him and wherever his gaze landed on or meant .

Well , yea he was a little bit surprised to find that not only Aido and Ruka , but also Akatsuki was not there .

But that didn't necessarily mean he was in love with Souen .

Just because he helped her once , or twice , didn't mean anything .

He didn't hate the girl . But he didn't love her either .

After all , he had no place left in his heart to love anyone . He couldn't even remember what it felt like to love someone . Apart from his family , cross , master yagari and maybe yuki , love meant nothing to him .

The deprived has nothing to offer . One cannot give what he doesn't have .

Losing its splendor , his heart resembled a fallen angel , a tainted purity .

He who does not possess , cannot bequeath .

He who does not have , cannot give.

A person deprived of love and family , betrayed by those closest to him , turned into the very monster he hunts , used and toyed with without his knowledge , can give nothing but resentment .

the only one claiming his heart in that sense was none other kuran kaname .

No grudge could rival the one he had against the pureblood devil .

Unbeknownst to Zero , the noise of the day class students slowly dwindled into hushed whispers , his uncharacteristic silence astonishing them into obeying the female prefect and forgetting all about the gorgeous members of the night class .

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" Why am I only knowing about this now ? " Zero spoke up calmly , mentally congratulating himself for not bursting into a fit of rage at the headmaster who seemed to be serious and it wasn't surprising , considering the situation at hand .

The elder hunter returned the glare directed at him with one of his own before repeating himself " Zero . I already told you that the association takes no action until the maximum estimated time for a mission passes . Kaito's mission required on average 3 days and at maximum 5 . When a week passed by without him reporting back , we began considering worst case scenarios . I understand how you feel but .. think of it as how you cannot go to the police and ask them to find a person who has gone missing for less than 24 hours . Do you expect the association to dispatch search parties on a random basis ? There are procedures and policies that we follow . "

The silverette knew all of that bullshit . But he couldn't wrap his mind around the fact Cross hasn't told him earlier . A day earlier might have made a difference !

Smacking his hand against his thigh in irritation , Zero averted his eyes elsewhere and finally started rubbing his forehead in a slow rough manner .

the silver haired hunter saw red .

 _No more losses .._

 _No more_ ..

He wanted to slam his hands on the table , to set the hunters' association on fire , to scream at the top of his lungs .

 _I swear to God if something happens to kaito , I_ ..

Zero honestly didn't know what he might do if God forbid , that was the case .

He only knew that someone would have to pay . And if he couldn't find the one responsible for that , then Kuran would suffice . He could only imagine how good it would feel to blame everything on him .

Tingles began dancing on his skin at the prospect , with another sensation quickly joining them .

 _Was it just him or was the weather too hot_ ?

He could barely think straight with the scorching heat threatening to devour his flesh , the nagging voice in the back of his mind telling him that his friend might be dead right then .

" Zero .. " As if he could read the younger's mind and didn't like what he found there , Cross wasted no time drawing the silver haired hunter's attention , a sympathetic frown marring his features as he took a deep breath in and finally added

" Kaito is a skilled hunter and normally , nothing should go wrong with his missions . However , it seems that we may have miscalculated the dangers lurking in the wait , which is why you have been assigned as the leader of the team that's going to look for kaito and the other hunters who accompanied him . "

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Early morning , right after class changeover :

The night class made their way back to the moon dorms , the one leading them being yuki and Takuma who walked a step behind her , ready to give assistance if needed .

Yuki was far from pleased . About half an hour ago Kaname told her he would not be present and that she would be the one taking his place , leaving her with the responsibility of keeping the entire night class in order .

Anyone else might be dancing in joy at the honour , thinking of it as a test of their leadership skills . But yuki was more annoyed at the fact kaname was still treating her as a child , keeping her in the dark and leaving the academy along with Seiren , disclosing nothing .

Yuki was so engrossed in her thoughts to the point she didn't notice Zero not being there .

Fortunately , the day class students didn't give Sayori hard time , for once .

They were more invested on coming up with theories explaining why the most popular night class students seem to be shrinking for no apparent reason . And why a certain silver haired male was not present .

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Meanwhile :

Ruka was about to use the restroom when she noticed her pumpkin haired cousin still following her like a puppy . A vein on her forehead nearly popped at that and before she could stop herself , a crude question rolled past her defences .

" Akatsuki , are you going to take a shit with me ? "

Now . Now . Ruka was a very delicate girl with a tongue of a saint . profanities rarely to never leave her mouth . So when that happens , it means she'd reached her limit .

" Oh .. Of course not . I wasn't paying attention . "

Akatsuki seemed to wake up from whatever daze he was in as he heard that sharp voice resounding in the air , snapping him back to the present time .

Ruka could only narrow her eyes as she watched him spin on his heels , preparing to leave , almost too eager to do so .

She couldn't attend class for a reason . She might faint again and make a scene , possibly end up in kiryuu's arms which was far from desirable on her part .

But why did Akatsuki stay ?

When she first asked , he said it was only natural for him to stay and consider her wellbeing . But for some reason , she was inclined to believe that wasn't the whole truth . She couldn't remember much aside from going to have a talk with the kuran princess and then everything went hazy .

Akatsuki told her she'd fainted .

But he seemed to know more .

He seemed to be hiding something from her .

And what he almost did proved that .

It felt like he was keeping a watch on her , like how guards would a prisoner expected to try escaping .

" Are you sure you skipped class today just to look after me or to monitor my every move ? "

What ensued was Akatsuki trying to evade such topic , giving vague answers that he hoped would satisfy the female currently inspecting every twitch and crease in his face , as if seeking to detect a lie in there .

In the end , he told her the whole story .

And of course it goes without saying that it didn't please her .

She stomped her way out exclaiming she was going to have a talk with a certain blue eyed male and when akatsuki tried to intervene , the level E side in her started to awaken , forcing him to stay away in case an injury caused by her claws had a viral effect .

The ginger haired noble stood in the hallway , gazing at Ruka's retreating figure and letting out an irritated curse , only to sense the return of the other vampires from class .

Praying for that to go in his favor , Akatsuki raced his way down to the first floor , intent on getting help as soon as possible .

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Hanabusa was having the best time in his life , lying on bed and doing nothing since he was allowed not to attend class , more like commanded not to , when the door of his room swayed open and barged in a furious looking Ruka .

The female noble marched her way to the blonde male and pulled him off the bed by the collar of his shirt , barking at him " You fool ! it's all your fault ! "

Cerulean eyes widened at that , the owner of which stuttering in disbelief " What ?! "

The grip on his shirt tightened for a moment before she let go of him , roughly , words of accusation tumbling down on him like dead weight " I'm being treated like a fucking time bomb because of you ! "

Hanabusa was given no time to regain his balance when she rushed back to his side and fisted his shirt again , that time managing to scratch her nails against his abdomen , the thing that made him lose his cool .

" Get your hands off me , Ruka ! You are testing my patience . " he'd nearly snarled , meaning every word he said.

But Ruka paid that no heed and instead , continued to rant " Had you been more careful , you wouldn't have gotten injured and none of this would have happened ! "

That was it .

Hanabusa finally snapped , shoving her away and roaring back " Shut up ! Does it look like I'm enjoying this ? Whatever you are going through is a reflection of what happens to me too . I'm fed up . you always think you are better than everyone and never waste a chance to patronize me . Akatsuki has been doing it for a while too . "

Ruka's body was that close to smashing against the wall and it was only thanks to him that she didn't , even though he didn't exactly do it out of concern for her .

" Patronize ? Are you out of your mind , Hanabu-

A hand slamming on her throat robbed the rest of his name , the feral glint in his eyes causing hers to falter and widen .

" Let go of her , Aido ! "

The order came from a calm but highly authoritative voice that both nobles hadn't expected to hear .

Hanabusa slowly shifted his gaze towards the doorway , eyes narrowing at the silver haired male standing there , giving him a dispassionate look .

He responded to that with a brief squeeze on the column of Ruka's throat before finally letting go , allowing her to crumble down and making his way to the foolish hunter .

Zero simply tilted his head to the side , silvery strands falling over his face in the process .

Splinters of ice sprang to life all of a sudden , before gathering and darting in the hunter's direction , forcing him to crouch down and roll on the ground , making the blonde noble smirk in satisfaction . But it was short lived because the next thing he knew , Kiryuu had him in a headlock after dragging him down as well .

But that didn't mean he was going to admit defeat . In Kiryuu's dreams .

Hanabusa found a way out when he elbowed the hunter's stomach instead of trying to loosen the hold on his neck .

Kiryu staggered back for a moment but still managed to dodge the punch aimed at his face compromising it by giving Hanabusa time and a chance to straddle him .

Yuki and the rest of the vampires watched as Hanabusa and Zero wrestled with so much ferocity until the noble eventually went slack , seemingly reaching his limit .

Zero ignored the noble's grimace and began standing up , pulling away from the blonde and turning around to approach the toffee hair colored female slumped against the wall a few steps away .

Before he could extend a hand to her , she inched closer to the wall , away from him , and shouted " Get away from me , hunter ! You could be the one behind this whole mess , trying to manipulate us . "

It did not make sense .

Yuki did not believe Ruka's accusation , not even a tiny part in her could suspect the hunter of being responsible .

Zero would never do that . She didn't even have to hear the truth to know that . And yet she found herself gazing at the said silverette , waiting for him to deny it all , to clear his name .

Resisting the temptation to roll his eyes , Zero straightened his back and stepped away from the irrational noble , before sighing and finally revealing " I can only say that it may have to do with my being a hunter . We are predators in our own way . we hunt down vampires . It might be instinctual fear making them submit to me , as compared to anyone else . "

Hanabusa was tempted to protest the moment he heard the 'submit ' part . But he couldn't deny that it did take him a lot of resistance to fight the hunter , something inside of him felt compelled to obey the silverette in way that he couldn't comprehend.

" In any case , it might be a good idea working on solving this issue instead of pointing accusing fingers at random people . " Zero stated in an offhanded manner as he made to leave but then stopped and turned back to address Souen .

" And oh if there's anyone here doing the manipulation then it's the very pureblood you are ready to kiss the ground he walks on . "

" Zero ! " yuki exclaimed , the unspoken ' that was uncalled for ' clear in her tone .

the silverette couldn't care any less though . If they didn't appreciate his help then they shouldn't ask for it .

When yuki barged in his room a few minutes ago , rambling about Ruka being in yet another fit of rage and pleading him to help , he couldn't bring himself to ignore her . Mind you , he had more pressing matters to tend to other than babysitting a bunch of vampires , like getting ready for that unforeseen search mission .

Besides , where the hell was Kuran ? Shouldn't he be in charge of his minions ?

Akatsuki , on the other hand , never liked it when someone insulted his beloved . He truly wanted to defend Ruka but wasn't that the truth ? Kiryuu's words .. It left a sour aftertaste ..

Still , the fire-wielding vampire found himself stepping inside the room , trying to help her up but she refused . probably embarrassed and too proud to accept .

Akatsuki merely smiled , retreated his hand and waited for her to stand up on her own .

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Meanwhile :

" Kaname-sama , what do you think ? " Seiren questioned as she stood a step behind the said pureblood , in the middle of an abandoned antique doll store .

The building consisted of two floors and a basement , appearing to be in a neat condition despite the copious amount of dust layering the shelves , furniture and the creepy dolls obviously . The attention given to details was almost stunning . Those wigs and how they were styled , the intricate dresses and the variety of hats ranging from pillbox to victorian bonnet .

Kaname's piercing gaze surveyed the entire place as did his superior senses before he commented " I can sense no sign of danger here . It doesn't seem like Rido left us any surprises . We can never be so sure though . Let's inspect further."

Rido was a wicked man that one should expect anything from .

Kaname had every reason to believe that the deceased pureblood may have planned something morbid in case he met his demise sooner than expected . He might even be related to that virus Hanabusa was unfortunate enough to get infected with .

It has been quite some time since Rido died and it has taken Seiren a lot of effort to scan the areas Kaname felt a slight remnant of Rido's aura in .

The late pureblood was obviously masking his aura to avoid getting caught . Which was why they could never detect his hideouts precisely . Though kaname being an ancestor and having a bond with the said made it easier to sense the wider range of land where Rido might have stayed .

To narrow down that search , Seiren had to go there by herself , inspecting every area her master had ordered her to look in .

Whenever she was done with one location , she'd report back and tell her opinion before suggesting that Kaname goes there himself to confirm it . As a pureblood , he'd be able to sense what she couldn't , to tell if a certain clue should be investigated further or not .

All in all , they have successfully checked most of the locations from the list .

The only place left was the one they currently occupied , and a small house about 19 kilometers away .

When they were done with the store , preparing to head to the next location , kaname frowned for a moment as soon as he stepped out of the shop .

It was snowing . heavily .

Unconsciously , his palms reached forward , catching the familiar softness of the snow before dropping to his sides again , all too fast , almost as if it brought back bad memories .

And in way , that was true .

He didn't exactly have a good history with snowy weather .

He could only hope that this time would be different .

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A/N

updated 15 oct , 2017

4798 words according to online word count sites

4223 according to google docs

so yay almost 5000 in the first case which is most likely true bec i tried more than one site and it could have been if i didn't delay the last hideout location to the next chapter .

What are your thoughts on this chapter ? What's going to happen next ? would the last hideout be as harmless as the rest ? What's that voice speaking to zero ? what happened to kaito ?

Next chapter may answer all of that ~

stay tuned ~

Love you all , thanks for reading and reviewing .

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	10. Chapter 10

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Their scents and auras masked , Kaname and Seiren strode forward , deep in the woods that was soon covered in layers of white . It was almost difficult to walk when every step meant sinking in the cold clutch of snow coating the ground , waiting for their siblings to fall from the skies , paint the atmosphere in a tiny mass of white before claiming the land as well .

The sound of their footsteps rang in their ears like a melody , muffled and soothing .

The temperature dropped even more , if that was possible .

The branches hung low under the added weight of piling snow , the green of them barely noticeable , the floor whitened and where the sunlight couldn't reach , it turned a pale grayish blue color .

One moment , they could feel and hear the wind howling , whistling , forcing the snow to join it in battle , and the next , it would falter , a climax dropping to the bottom , allowing its lover to relax , their movement changing into that of a slow dance , caressing each other and everything else .

 _It was a pretty sight_. Kaname admired . But that wasn't the only adjective he would use to describe snow .

When Rido murdered Haruka and Juri , it was snowing , heavily .

When yuki was attacked by a level E , forcing him to take action and protect her , it was snowing .

When he first caught a glimpse of the kiryuu twins , it was snowing.

When he freed Shizuka so she could seek revenge and set his plan in motion , starting with the kiryuu massacre and biting one of the twins , the strongest of which , it was snowing .

He couldn't help the pained frown marring his features in response to such memories . So he willed himself to think of something else , anything to distract himself from the gnawing beast residing deep within his heart , the feeling of guilt .

Vampires don't get sick but they surely do feel cold , not in the same way a human does of course . But they still do .

Seiren was doing a marvelous job keeping her gait firm , tall , and proud . But he could never miss the way she trembled for a brief moment every now and then .

She must be aware of his deep scrutiny and yet she said and did nothing , unruffled by his piercing gaze , as usual .

In a soft gesture , he shook his head and smiled before wrapping her in his coat , eliciting a choked gasp from her -considering how he was still wearing it- .

" Kaname-sama ! " The normally expressionless female found herself shrieking as if she'd committed an unforgivable sin . And she might have , in the eyes of many , despite not being one to initiate anything .

 _Now that was amusing , for a change_. it might actually be why he decided to do something as mischievous and random as that .

Seiren has always been by his side and in all of those years , he'd never seen a different expression on her face . It has always been that impassive look in control of her facial muscles , regardless of the situation . He would have called her a living doll if he didn't know better .

Besides , it doesn't hurt to do something uncharacteristically playful every once in awhile . he could still remember that time he surprised even himself when he gave kiryuu a life-size stuffed doll .

Before the female could protest some more , however , a dreadful feeling settled in both of their guts .

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A certain hunter had barely gotten changed out of his school uniform and into an olive green trench coat that he paired with light beige pants when an involuntary sigh left his mouth .

He wasn't exactly mad at what happened earlier . He wasn't feeling terribly offended or even disappointed in the slightest bit . But Ruka's suspicions may have went viral and now the entire night class might be thinking the same .

He didn't really care what impression they had of him but he didn't like to receive such accusations when he really had done nothing . He would never do something like that . He had morals that forbade him from such actions . He had a sense of honor . And yet that so called honor didn't seem to be there when it came to kuran . Zero found himself ready to trample on anything and everything , cross any boundaries , if it meant he could turn every moment of kuran's life a living hell .

He'd always been a man of virtues , not sins . or so he liked to believe . But now he couldn't even lie to himself and say that .

He may think that he would have never done what Souen had implied he did , but after what he'd done to get back at Kuran , could he really think of himself as an Angel ?

The night class , as it was , might suspect him of being involved in that level E poison mishap . If they knew about the bloodbond he forced on Kuran and what he'd planned for the pureblood , they'd have even more of a reason to suspect him of doing even worse , they wouldn't put anything past him .

He couldn't really blame them for not trusting him . After all , he might have reacted in the same way if the situation was reversed .

Well , whatever .. screw it all . Zero grumbled as he flopped down on bed . He'd never cared if people viewed him in a good or bad light . Back then , he didn't care because he knew that whatever people thought of him did not matter as long as he did nothing to be ashamed of .

Could he really say the same thing now ?

Everything has changed . He'd done something shameful by his old standards .

But damn it if he didn't have a good reason !

He couldn't imagine himself allowing Kuran to breathe or live in peace after he'd found out what the bastard had done to him and his family .

Kuran should pay and if life wasn't fair enough to give the pureblood what he deserved then Zero would see to it that everyone who'd wronged him endured a fate worse than death .

Something seemed to have disconnected in his brain at that .

He couldn't recognise himself anymore .

And it was all Kuran's fault .

Zero found it increasingly difficult to trust even Cross at that point . Because no matter how much he wanted to deny it or how much he regarded himself a fool for believing it , he did think that Kuran might be different , that he had a morsel of conscience and consequently , a good side , no matter how diminutive.

And then what happened ?

The hunter had to deal with the shock of discovering it had actually been Kuran behind his misery , all of it .

And the bastard had the audacity to look him in the eyes all those years and demand respect ?

Zero could only scoff and shake his head as he drowned in a proverbial ocean he was now too familiar with , feeling at loss for words .

Sometimes , he found himself wondering .. Wouldn't it be so convenient if he could just slam his head hard against the nearest wall in hopes of losing his memories ?

It would , without doubt , feel so refreshing , so much better than the hell he was forced to endure .

And yet he couldn't bring himself to do it , for his memories and the pain they carried within their folds have shaped him into the person he's become . And he wasn't just about to relinquish any of it for the sake of a peaceful life .

It was far too late to even hope for that .

Perhaps , it was better to think of something else or he might end up destroying his room in a fit of rage .

In an effort to steer his thoughts away from his wretched destiny , he flopped down on bed , mentally preparing himself for his mission , the purpose of which searching for kaito and his team .

Zero couldn't help but feel wary though . What if kaito wasn't even on a mission and the whole thing has been orchestrated to lure the silverette in a trap ? Sure , he did try to phone kaito and was met with an automated message stating the number he was trying to call was switched off or not available .

But that didn't necessarily mean kaito was away on a mission .

The silver haired hunter exhaled deeply at that .

As much as he loathed to admit it , there was only one way to find out .

That left one issue for him to agonize over .

His bloodlust .

He'd fed from Kuran in over two days and had no idea how long the mission would take . which consequently meant his thirst might rear its ugly head at a very bad timing .

He could only hope for the best , and expect the worst .

Maybe.. Just maybe , he wouldn't mind it if nothing but death was waiting for him .

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As soon as he reached his destination , Zero wasted no time , deciding to meet the head of the hunters' association so he could officially take the mission.

As he walked down the hallway , he busied himself with thoughts of the said female .

Megumi had a very , zero wondered how he should put it until the word hit him , colorful taste . It was almost as if she wanted to see how far she could make her guests uncomfortable . Seriously , why else would anyone have their office decorated like that ?

Decorative bricks hung from the ceiling in various height levels , not to mention the cobblestone floor . With each step you take in her office , you would feel like walking straight into a trap .

The woman looked too young for her age , had short brown hair styled in waves or maybe it was naturally like that , hazel eyes , and warm skin tone . Looks aside though , she was definitely not a force to be reckoned with .

The head of the association had a very strong memory to the point she never worried about reports going missing or getting torn or anything , add on the fact she possessed a lot of mental skills along with various fighting techniques , to name a few .

It was only when he found himself knocking on the door of her office , that he realized he must have been too lost in thoughts to notice anything .

Megumi seemed to like him . he didn't know why , but she did .

He was not sure if that was a mask she carefully crafted or not but he liked to believe it was not . Nothing good would come out of someone as influential as her having hidden agendas for him . He really could do with one less hassle to deal with .

If it were any other time , she might have served him some tea with biscuits , he could already guess . Megumi did remind him of chairman cross in that sense .

She had an eccentric side , a sweet tooth , and an inclination to shield her intimidation behind a gullible and harmless mask .

Her voice , gruff and femininely soft at the same time , interrupted his musing though .

" There's a matte green Jeep wrangler parked in the basement parking , pillar 79 . Take it . the rest of the team should either be waiting or about to arrive shortly . "

Team .. he almost forgot he wasn't going alone and quite frankly , he much preferred it if no one else was assigned for the mission with him . He never liked working with others , for many reasons . Now , even more so , because as a leader , he would have a responsibility to hold , lives to protect , and lots of other issues he was not exactly fond of .

Still , he managed a nod , proceeding to do as told when she spoke up once more , her voice considerably gentle that time

" Be careful , Kiryuu . "

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A certain silver haired male was far from pleased .

Some hunters respected and admired him to the point of reverence , others saw his existence as nothing more than a disgrace , a monster on the loose -despite the well known fact he was no longer in danger of descending to a level E - , and finally , there was those who didn't even bother with it , like he was not worth their time .

Apparently , some higher power up there deemed it funny to toy with him some more , gifting him with three teammates who just so happened to fit the description of the three types of impressions hunters had of him .

He barely got to the parking , found the car and leant on it , when a female hunter named Misao emerged , introducing herself as one of the hunters assigned to his mission and stating how it was an honor for her to work with him . He already knew her name though . He did go through her profile briefly , as he did with the other two .

Misao was the only female in the team , had a pair of warm green eyes and long midnight blue hair gathered in a high ponytail with a soft fringe framing most of her face .

She was quite talkative too , much to his misfortune , but also seemed to be one of those who admired him . so he told himself it was only polite to let her talk all she wanted . It wasn't like he had anything better to do while waiting for the rest of his team to show up .

" Ryosuke is a very punctuate person . He should be here in a few minutes . He won't be a problem . " Misao spoke up , trying to reassure him when she noticed how dissatisfied he looked .

Her words were rather telling though .

" But Tomoya will , right ? " Reading between the lines , the silverette questioned , sparing her a quick look before going back to stare ahead , expression calm and nonchalant despite finding it bothersome to wait.

Zero could already tell , judging by Misao's expression , that Tomoya was not exactly fond of him and might purposely show up late just to annoy him .

The silverette did not like underground parkings . Their lights were either too strong or too irritating , and in the latter case , he'd end up feeling sleepy .

Staying longer than was necessary in such setting was not something he enjoyed but if there was one thing he excelled in , it was dealing with assholes , seeing as how his life was mainly comprised of them .

Misao sent him a questioning look , as if she wanted to convey 'Don't you care ?'

In response , he gave her a smile that suggested he'd stopped caring a long time ago .

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Something was not right . Seiren could feel it .

Their steps ground to a halt at that , eyes fixated on the cottage at the far end of the steep path , a few meters below .

The skies were dim and packed with ominous clouds , hiding the sun from view .

If he didn't know better , Kaname would have thought it was sunset already .

 _What a depressing weather_.

Serien gave him an alarmed knowing look .

When she first came there , she didn't feel that . The place was devoid of any auras .

But now , she could clearly feel a barrier of sorts , preventing her from sensing the aura residing in the house or detecting its location accurately . It felt like an incoherent noise confusing her senses , a deliberate signal failure .

" Someone is there . Seems like we have intruded and now they are forced to hide . "

Kaname's mind worked in full speed , formulating possibilities and different scenarios .

Level Es do not think . While they may possess a minimal level of intelligence , a primitive cunningness that they use to lure their prey in , they do not have what it takes to scheme a detailed strategy , hiding and confusing their enemy so as to keep their identities a secret .

The person hiding from him was not a level E , or at least not a normal one .

After giving Seiren one last earnest look , he quietly strode his way towards the cottage , with her figure following after him , just as furtive .

The closer they got , the more they could feel the same disruption gnawing at their senses , hindering them from detecting anything inside .

It didn't take long before they reached the door and naturally , it was Seiren taking the lead , sliding the door open with the smallest of efforts , as if she didn't want to alert a sleeping occupant .

Logs of wood creaked with every step they took , but that was it .

The lesser vampire was half expecting an invisible force to slam the door shut after they walked in , and thus trapping them inside . if that happened , Kaname-sama would easily reduce the place into splinters in a matter of seconds .

But even that did not happen .

In fact , It's been a while now that they stepped inside the cottage and nothing of what they had expected took place .

No maddened shrieks , no level Es lunging forward , unable to resist the allure of the pure blood . Nothing .

So whoever hiding was not Lurking in the dark , waiting for a chance to attack . They were either hiding out of fear or a desire to keep their existence a secret .

Whatever technique they used to incapacitate Kaname's senses would sure end up devouring their energy fast .

He just needed to wait till that happened .

They would not be able to take the strain forever after all . At some point , they would feel drained and be forced to reveal themselves . It was obvious they didn't count on that .

They probably thought he wouldn't linger there for much time . which was an error on their part .

 _They could hide all they wanted_. He wasn't moving an inch from that cottage until he found out who they were and whether or not they had a relation to Rido .

He waited .

And waited , choosing to busy himself with observing the place .

The only seat in the house looked pitiful . Kaname didn't even know if he could call it a chair . It didn't look like it could support his weight so he decided it was better to stand rather than risk sitting on it .

All in all , it didn't look like the place was inhabited .

No personal belongings , no basic necessities , just dust and spiderwebs .

And oh , let's not forget the unknown presence .

At that point , his patience was running thin but there was no outward sign of it .

He couldn't help but think .. What if it was done purpose , to distract him from something else , something much bigger and terrible ?

It was just a possibility but ..

He mentally cursed , reminding himself that should anything happen back there at the academy , Yuki would be able to handle herself , the night class would protect her , Kiryuu would .

As if he needed a reminder of the ungrateful ex-human .

The pureblood felt his mood turn foul at the thought .

Sometimes , he wished he could erase his memories of that night . Others , he wished he could do it to the hunter instead .

But he knew that either of which would have consequences , possibly dire , and that was the last thing he needed .

What he'd done to Kiryuu was immoral , he knew . But he had no other choice .

He couldn't see a way to shield yuki and free himself from Rido's clutches that didn't end in bloodshed .

If it hadn't been Kiryuu then it would have been anyone else fitting the pureblood's scheme . There was no personal feelings involved . It's not like he deliberately chose Kiryuu , out of spite or a need to ruin his life . The pureblood merely recognized a chance when he saw one .

It was just the kiryuus luck that they happened to fit his plan , being the recipient of Shizuka's grudge .

Even if he hadn't freed her , she might have ended up seeking revenge and biting one of the twins , causing the same fate to befall the kiryuu family .

He knew that would never condone his sin , nothing could .. but ..

Was he really trying to justify his deeds by claiming it might have been the same anyways ?

Even if Shizuka ended up doing the same thing , at least then , he wouldn't have been involved , he wouldn't have been guilty of such gruesome crime .

Sometimes , a voice in the back of his mind would suddenly awaken from its slumber , telling him it was only fair to let Kiryuu do whatever he wanted and that such was the only way for him to alleviate the pain of his conscience , to free himself from the burden and possibly be granted forgiveness . But then his darker side would manifest , harshly opposing , because he knew he didn't even deserve to purge his sins , to be forgiven .

Letting out an overwhelmed sigh , Kaname closed his eyes for a moment , desperate for any form of rest , knowing otherwise was waiting for him .

True enough , the next time he opened his eyes , what greeted him was a rather unexpected sight .

A little boy no more than 6 years old .

A little boy whose aura screamed human and yet he couldn't possibly be one .

If the pureblood was surprised , he didn't show it .

" You are a kuran ." the voice was detached as it was hostile .

Kaname's lips shaped into a smile at that . His expression looked gentle , touched with a hint of sadness so imperceptible one could miss it . A touch of sorrow that never really left him .

But the child was not fooled .

" Aren't you the smart one . " Inwardly noting how the little boy didn't seem exactly fond of kurans , the pureblood commented , his voice calm and soothing , like a ripple on the water's surface .

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4039 words

updated 15 nov , 2017


	11. Chapter 11

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Yuki was the first one to retire back to her room after the whole drama of Hanabusa attacking Ruka and Zero trying to contain the situation before leaving in a bad mood when the toffee hair coloured noble refused his help and accused him of being responsible .

It didn't take long before Ruka herself managed to calm down and stood up , without anyone's help , then left the room , ignoring everything as she walked away , descended the stairs , and settled in the living room , lost in thought .

Senri and Rima were still standing by the door of Hanabusa's room , Takuma occupying the place in front of them , eyebrows knitted , with no trace of the cheerful smile that he usually had on his face .

Inside the room , Akatsuki had his hands on his waist , looking as if he was still in the middle of comprehending what had just happened .

" I personally think you two should talk . "

His voice filled the quiet atmosphere , snapping Hanabusa out of his thoughts .

Any other day and the blonde might have dismissed such suggestion , easily brushing it away because it was nothing out of the ordinary for him and Ruka to disagree or even insult each other . But the current situation was far from normal . It was as Akatsuki had just said .. they needed to talk , now more than ever before .

The flame haired noble watched as his cousin walked out of the room with a determined and solemn expression , intent on finding Ruka and putting an end to the tension between them .

After a couple of moments , Akatsuki stood just outside the room , making him in the center between the other three nobles who had yet to say a single word in reaction to everything transpiring before their eyes .

" I'm heading downstairs . those two might need a push to talk . " It came out more of a sigh than words . And nobody could blame him , on the contrary .

Had Akatsuki been one to openly express himself , his mouth would have been wide open at the sight before him . Sitting on the same couch were Ruka and Hanabusa , actually talking not bickering , and like the adults they were too .

" It was childish of me to accuse you .. though I still believe if you were more careful , we may have been able to avoid this inexplicable state we are in . " The fact that she'd admitted such thing was stunning in itself . As omitted as it was , she'd actually apologized .

Hanabusa said nothing in response to that , urging her to talk some more .

She lowered her head and took in a deep breath , gazing at her own intertwined hands and eventually confessing " I have never looked down on you . we have never .. Akatsuki and I .. Believe it or not , we care for you so deeply .. why do you think I rushed to destroy the level E that attacked you ? "

Hanabusa did not shed tears but something inside , his soul , seemed to be doing just that . He'd never heard Ruka talk with so much emotions before . He'd never felt so small and ashamed of himself for doubting them . His eyebrows knitted and throat closed up as he held himself back .

" We are in this together , Hanabusa . Everything is going to be okay . "

She promised , moving a hand to rest it on his arm and squeeze in reassurance . He could only nod and face her , a diverse blend of emotions painting his eyes .

What he did next , no one expected . He'd apologized and embraced her , the sentiment of commitment dominating his actions . He was going to protect them and see to it that everything was going to be alright , for real .

A few steps away stood Akatsuki , with a content and a brotherly smile adorning his usually bored and intimidating face , while Senri and Rima sat on the staircase and whispered to each other .

" How do you think he subdues them ? " It was almost unnoticeable but Rima had a beautiful glow in her eyes as she asked that , a part of her was still feeling incredibly touched at the heartwarming scene taking place down there .

A moment of silence decorated the air until Senri replied " There's nothing I wouldn't give to know that . "

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Up in his room , Takuma flopped down on bed , exhaustion marring his features and entire vibe.

Seemed like everyone had questions regarding Zero Kiryuu , including himself .

There was something unsettling deep in those lilac eyes of Kiryuu-kun , a brewing storm , in Takuma's opinion .

The spike of hatred that time had managed to dull was once again burning with gruesome intensity in those pair of startling amethysts . Why , Takuma had no idea . But he knew it had to do with Sara .

The hunter said he needed her memories because she left something very important behind , a purpose ..

What did he see in her memories ?

A purpose ?

Hatred ?

Zero Kiryuu hated one thing the most and that was vampires , especially purebloods .. Shizuka hio .. but she was already dead .. The only remaining two purebloods were Yuki and Kaname Kuran .

Emerald eyes widened at that .

Could it be ?

Could Kiryuu have found out the truth ?

No .. that was not possible .. Sara did not know that , right ?

A surge of panic shook his being at the thought of it alone .

If that was true then.. Kaname .. Kaname..

Takuma clasped a hand over his mouth , feeling all of his loyalty towards Kaname rush back to him like a speeding truck.

It was only then that he realized , his feelings for Sara had already died with her . And that could only mean one thing . she'd never meant so much to him as compared to Kaname .

It's true that he didn't want her to die .. but that was it .

Do you think someone like Sara deserves to live ? Kaname had once asked him .

And his response was .. No . but I don't think she deserves to die either .

Then why the hell did he turn into a living corpse after her death ? Why did he blame Kaname ? why did he continue to distrust him despite the strong bond they had ?

Someone was messing with his brain , most definitely . Someone wanted him to stray away from Kaname's side , to keep thinking of sara and only her .

It made sense .

His feelings for Sara , especially after her death , felt foreign and forced , as if they weren't his own , as if someone wanted him to feel that way , like some sort of hypnosis . He'd always known , deep inside , but couldn't truly grasp the truth of it until now .

The realization petrified him to the core .

Who had the power to do such thing ? To shake his immense loyalty and friendship ?

He didn't even have to ask why . It was already obvious . Someone was after Kaname .

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Yuki didn't know if she was feeling defeated or determined . On one hand , she did feel useless and helpless , not knowing how to deal with the Level E-like behavior of two nobles and having to ask Zero for help , to do what was supposed to be her job .

She'd often wondered why she couldn't command them to stop but then she would remember that even Kaname couldn't .

There was only one person capable of pacifying or subduing the nobles back to normal and that was , for some odd reason , Zero .

Yuki had lost count of the times she asked herself why and how .

Why Zero in particular ? How ?

Could Ruka's words have some elements of truth to them ?

Could Zero be involved ?

No way.. Right ?

No .. Just no ..

Ridiculous ..

How could Zero have the power to manipulate nobles when a pureblood couldn't ?

He had nothing to do with it , Yuki was sure . Which was a great relief , but it didn't solve the mystery at all .

Who was the one behind the near virus issue ?

She'd tried to rack her brain for an answer but couldn't come up with any , much to her dismay . If they didn't know who the hell posed a threat then how were they supposed to act accordingly ?

Simple ..

They were going to have to be extra careful all the time , she decided .

Well , one problem tossed to the shelf until further notice .

There remained another question though .

Where did kaname disappear off to ? Why was he keeping her in the dark ?

She was no child .. she had a right to know whatever he knew . For how long was he going to protect her when he himself might be the one needing it most ?

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Somewhere else :

" Until the next time . "

The little boy said in a vague tone before vanishing as if he'd never been there , the thing that unsettled Kaname beyond belief .

If the child could disappear just like that then why did he not do it a long time ago ? why wait until he was surrounded ?

There was only one plausible explanation . He wanted them to find him . He wanted them to meet .

Why though ?

Who was he ?

What was he after ? He didn't exactly seem too fond of kurans , which was no good sign . but why ?

Did he have any kind of relation with Rido ? If so then what was it ?

Questions kept growing and expanding in every direction , with no specific answer for them .

There was a lot of strange occurrences taking place as of late and Kaname couldn't say for sure if they were related or not .

Whatever it was going on back there in the academy with Ruka and Hanabusa , could it have anything to do with that mysterious child ? Or was it simply a coincidence of odd incidents taking place at about the same time ?

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Nighttime :

Amethyst orbs snapped open , the owner of which eventually realizing he was covered in a sheen of sweat , his heart beating so fast he honestly feared it would stop right then and there .

It was funny how he couldn't get used to having nightmares no matter how often they paid him a visit .

Taking a moment to regain his composure , Zero closed his eyes , trying to sooth his frantic breathing back into normal .

The next time he opened his eyes , it stung , terribly . He could do nothing but stare at the ceiling , eyes blurred and unblinking , heart laden with an emotion far too complicated to describe .

He should take that out .

He really should , before he started alerting the two males sleeping a few steps away from him .

Two males ?

A little bit disoriented , Zero found himself going through the memories of the day .

After a long hectic ride , they finally reached the deserted town close to the location of Kaito's mission . But by then , it was already nighttime , forcing them to book two rooms in a certain inn and delay the start of their mission .

Now that everything was falling back into place , he found himself sitting upright , preparing to leave , but not before slipping his hand under the pillow and taking Bloody Rose with him .

Even though he knew the other two hunters were deep asleep , judging by their steady breathing and heartbeats , he didn't feel comfortable in the room , especially when he recalled that nightmare he just had . It felt like their eyes were watching him , in a way .

Careful with his steps , Zero made his way towards the door and swiftly abandoned the room .

He walked down the hallway , intent on getting as far as possible from his shared room with the two hunters , not even knowing where he was heading .

He just wanted to get away , from everything .

His legs seemed to have other plans though , threatening to give out earlier than expected , forcing him to lean on the wall until he could not bear the strain any longer .

His quivering figure sagged down the wall , a fallen angel . No … Not an Angel .. A soldier maybe .. Whatever .. It mattered not . He'd fallen and that was it .

When did he sink that low ?

Did he not realise that hatred and revenge were not going to heal his pain ?

He did .. He did .

It was never going to bring his parents or ichiru back , nor was it going to turn the time back . His parents would not be proud of what he'd become , despite everything . He himself might not find any sort of satisfaction when his game of revenge reached its end . If Yuki happened to know , she'd hate him ..

But then again , if he didn't feel that way after learning the truth , he would be insane , either that or too pure and forgiving to be real .

Was he supposed to clap his hands for Kuran ? Or was he supposed to forget everything , leave the academy and possibly the whole country , fall in love at first sight , marry a girl and make his own family like nothing had happened ?

Bullshit !

If he chose to give up on revenge , his life would have no meaning .

No loved ones . No home . Nothing to work hard for . Nothing to look forward to , Nothing .

He would have no purpose . And a person with no purpose often contemplates suicide , which he knew was bound to happen sooner or later . But at least , taking revenge would buy him some time . Maybe then , he wouldn't mind dying . He'd have nothing left to fulfil , after all .

Besides , he really didn't see what was so bad about him wanting revenge .

It was not abnormal or unheard of , on the contrary . The idea of taking revenge wasn't something he'd invented . People have always been doing it ..

It was not unprecedented .

Whatever he planned to do was merely a natural reaction to the crime Kuran had so feloniously committed against him .

It's not like he hated the bastard for no reason .

Generally Speaking , He had three options when it came to Kuran , ignoring him -which he could not do- , killing him right away -which he also could not do , for it would devastate yuki - .

 _.. And torturing him wouldn't ?_

Zero couldn't help but scoff at his own reasoning .

Still , he couldn't stop himself from seeking revenge . It was the .. 'happy medium' , he decided rather dryly ..

It's then that a distant voice echoed in his head , disapproving , telling him he was no better than Kuran , causing the silverette to chuckle in despair .

Who said I wanted to be better ?

For someone as adamant as he was on taking revenge , he was sure contradicting himself with the flood of tears running past his cheeks , proving just how messed up he felt about the whole thing .

Just this once , let me be the devil .

Breaking down into an avalanche of tears , he whispered a plea to the still of the night , dearly wishing that someone out there understood his pain .

If it had been a normal case , he would have left the police to handle everything .

But that was not an option , for many reasons . Kuran being a pureblood made it impossible to even think of him being sentenced to death , or life imprisonment , or any kind of punishment for that matter .

No one was going to deliver Justice to Zero on a golden plate . He had to do it himself . that was the sad truth . No one was going to help . No one cared . If life was that kind and fair to him , he wouldn't have suffered since birth . He wouldn't have had to live with the guilt of condemning his twin to a fate worse than death every waking moment .. He wouldn't have had to face the ultimate tragedy of watching his parents' butchered bodies by the hand of a demented pureblood that wasted no time to turn his life upside down .. He wouldn't have had to deal with the shock of knowing just who helped that monster sneak in . He wouldn't have had to lead that wretched life of his , accepted by neither hunters nor vampires . He wouldn't have had to struggle with the conflict of housing two polar opposites in his body . He wouldn't have had to loathe himself for becoming a monster . He wouldn't have known the pain of bloodlust and the following pang of shame suffocating his conscience . He wouldn't have had troubles digesting the blood tablets . At that point , it seemed like the list could go on forever .. He had no doubts it could ..

If only life had been a little less cruel .. If only ..

Too bad it couldn't even do that much for his sake ..

Life just couldn't deign and show him less cruelty , right ? Because even that , was asking for too much .

As he thought of that , only one question imposed itself .

For how long was he supposed to stay a saint ? to let his emotions and humanity get in the way ? What good was it for ?

He didn't want to feel , not anymore .

Besides , why should he show mercy to someone like Kuran ? An 'enemy' would be too kind of a word to describe him . Zero didn't think a word existed to capture the amount of resentment he felt for the pureblood .

Maybe it was a sin to hate someone that much and want to destroy them … But .. He had every right to .. It's not like he wanted Kuran to suffer for the hell of it . He was not wicked so as to harm someone who had done nothing wrong to him . He only wanted his right . He wanted kuran to pay for what he'd done , to feel the same excruciating pain Zero was forced to endure , or at least a fraction of it ..

He didn't think he was asking for much .. It was only fair .

Besides , Life has never failed to show him how much his very existence represented misfortune , bringing with it nothing but pain and doom to everyone around him . What's one more sin to add to the list ?

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A few minutes passed by and Zero felt nothing but anger and hatred surge through his being , urging him to vent his emotions in the one form he knew of .

Making up his mind , he let out a sigh before collecting himself from the ground of the hallway and heading towards the forest near the inn .

He stopped by the nearest tree and leant on it , head lifted to the dark sky above , studying it with little to no admiration .

When that didn't seem to distract him anymore , he closed his eyes for a while , just listening to his surroundings , feeling the breeze as it passed by .

It was rather cold… he thought absently .. well , it did snow after all .

A frown took over his features at that .

He didn't exactly have a good history with snow .. Everything tragic seemed to take place when it snowed .. such depressing weather ..

It was ironic , wasn't it ?

No matter how much he tried to steer his thoughts away from grief , it never seemed to work . Heartache seemed to follow him wherever he went . At that point , he had to wonder if was even capable of feeling an emotion other than sadness or hatred .

Letting out a long withdrawn sigh , he was about to pull his body away from the tree and head back to the inn when he heard movements nearby .

He stilled , focusing his senses on the source of the sound , stand-by mode activated and bloody rose ready to shoot .

He didn't sense a bloodsucker but that wasn't enough to reassure him . He had to be careful and alert till the last breath.

He had t-

The hunter blinked when a white rabbit leapt out of the bushes and looked around before meeting his gaze , its eyes red and provoking , reminding him of vampires .

For some odd reason , he wanted to kill it . What his eyes saw had not been a harmless animal but Kuran .

He could move stealthily and pick a twig then drive it through that flesh . It would be so easy . In fact , he was already doing it , or at least attempting to , when he snapped out of it and let go of the branch , the thud of it scaring the rabbit and causing him to flee .

Zero dropped to the ground at that , feeling a little bit too shocked to function ..

He should have been happier , he supposed .. At least , he hadn't become completely heartless .

He did carry so much darkness in his heart but not enough to kill a harmless being .

What a relief !

Slowly but surely , his eyebrows quivered upwards and lips curled to form a weak smile , tears gathering in his eyes and flowing past his cheeks for the second time that night , but not with the same intensity .

" You were right to want me dead , Yuki . " he whispered to himself , recalling what had happened in the nightmare .. Having found out about his scheme , She stood in front of him , holding his own gun and aiming it at his heart , blaming him for breaking hers , hurt and betrayal so vivid in her eyes .

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 _Please hush , don't keep on crying_

 _My child with a lovely face_

 _If you cry , you won't look as beautiful._

 _Please hush…my child…_

 _There… The moon is full,_

 _Like the head of a scary giant_

 _One who's looking for a crying child._

 _Please , Nii-san ._

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4013 words

4 feb , 2018

I'm incredibly sorry for the long wait . Believe it or not , I started working on this since nov 15 last year ( As in that's when I created the new document ) and kept slowly writing more to it on different time intervals depending on my mood , inspiration , time . Though I admit I did deliberately delay it because I had some questions I needed answers for before proceeding because I thought I needed them in this chapter but I recently realized otherwise .

Thank you all for reading and reviewing .


	12. Chapter 12

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Even in death , Rido had still managed to get on Kaname's nerves .

The man and his selfish desires had always ended up costing Kaname alot more than he could afford . He'd never wanted to wake up from his almost eternal sleep , only to have Rido ruin it all by doing the exact opposite , forcing him into awakening just so he could gain power while also making sure Kaname could do nothing to get rid of him . An innocent newborn had been one to pay the price . But that didn't seem to faze Rido , it never did , actually , nothing did .. with the exception of Juuri being Haruka's of course . Anything else mattered not to the man , not his parents , not his brother and not even Juuri's impression of him . He couldn't get her love but at least he got all of her hatred . He had a place in her heart even if it wasn't all flowers and sparkles .

And it didn't stop there . Kaname thought , bringing himself back to the original focus rather than losing himself in miserable details .

What transpired afterwards had felt like a dominoes game , everything tumbling down after one single piece had been shoved to the bottom .

There are times when a twinge of regret would manifest in Kaname's heart . It's true that Yuki was the only sun in his life , the only hope and source of happiness .. But in his more depressed times ( which reoccurred more often than not ) , he'd find himself regretting that attachment because it only complicated everything .

If she hadn't meant so much to him , if he'd never met her , maybe then he could have easily went back to sleep without a care in the world . He had nothing to look forward to , nothing and no one to live for .

Instead , he was stuck in the world of living , forced to think of her safety as well as the promise he'd given to the hooded woman not long ago .

He could only grimace whilst dividing his thoughts into smaller bits and pieces .

In a broad sense , he had to give Yuki back to the light because that's where she'd always belonged .. He had to succeed in doing what Juuri couldn't - turning Yuki into a human for good - . The only problem was that he couldn't do both .

It was either the sacrifice of humanizing Yuki or that of replacing the ancestress . He had to think of someone he could use instead of himself in the former case .

But who ?

It wasn't long before a deep sigh left his mouth as he gathered all the incidents that had happened as of late along with what obligations he had to address in one jumbled mess that was his head , quickly finding it wearing him down in a way he hadn't anticipated .

It didn't come as a surprise though .. He'd always known that somewhere deep in his soul something has given up .. But he'd never felt it that strong , that intense , before .

Was he really experiencing a relapse ?

That was his last coherent thought , repeating itself in his mind so many times until he finally sagged down the headpost he'd been leaning on before he properly lied down on bed and let his eyelids meet , welcoming the dark with open arms .

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Generally speaking , Zero was no morning person and seeing as how he'd gotten little to no sleep the night before or peace for that matter , he genuinely was not in the mood to tolerate Tomoya's bullshit .

He knew the bastard might not have been that hungry to begin with . And yet he still found the guts to toss that silly remark which Zero might have ignored some other day . Well , not today , fucker .

Nose flared , Zero walked past a worried Misao and slammed his hands on the table where Tomoya sat down to 'eat' a well balanced breakfast because 'some of us need actual food to function' as the bastard had been so kind to explain .

Well , Zero wasn't cruel enough to deprive his team of nutrients but that didn't mean he would watch them take their time and enjoy a feast while they had to be searching for fellow hunter who had gone missing in action . Never mind the fact that very hunter happened to be his childhood friend .

" Listen , you piece of shit , we are here on a mission not vacation ! And this - "

He stopped in the middle of his sentence to grab a sandwich and wrapped it in handkerchief before pushing it to the hunter's hands and finally added " you can eat as we walk . "

Tomoya looked too surprised to say anything in response but when he finally got back to his senses , Zero and the others had already left the inn while the owner of the place gave him the sharpest 'judging you' look he'd ever inspired in anyone .

Cursing , he tightened his hold on the sandwitch , choosing to take it with him out of sheer tenacity , and rose up from his seat with more force than was necessary , obviously throwing a tantrum in his own way .

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The first day went by without any real progress or hints so as to where Kaito could have gone . No matter how much they walked in the woods and scanned the whole place , no traces were to be found .

 _But it was too early to give up_. Zero could not lose hope yet . _Kaito was still alive , he had to_ be . Anything else Zero could and would not accept . He was ready to spend the rest of his life searching a place he'd already memorized and known like the back of his hands if it meant he could find him .

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The tension between Zero and Tomoya had anything but dissipated the second day of searching for any clues that could lead them to Kaito and his team . Gratefully though , Misao had been smart enough to interfere and put a stop to their arguments that acted as nothing but a hindrance to their mission . Zero felt immensely grateful for her presence . Seriously , he was about to punch the guy in the face if he tossed him one more insult . Forget about being calm and chill . Zero was no longer that kind of man . He had become a volcano ready to erupt any moment then and snap at anyone . Screw it all !

They had to split up not just for the sake of a higher chances of success but also to avoid Zero and Tomoya tearing each other's faces off . If the former could be described as a volcano , the latter could be a raging storm and honestly , this whole thing was affecting their teamwork in bad ways , to the point that Ryosuke found himself aiding Misao at some point , trying to pry Tomoya away from their leader.

The redhead would be tempted to say a word or two and sometimes Zero would ignore it . But when he doesn't , everything turns ugly . An insult turns into a sentence choke-full of profanities and comebacks . The moment Misao and Ryosuke think it's over , one of the other two just has to say something else and everything would escalate further .

To remedy that , they all agreed on splitting up starting from the second day and only going back to a meeting point by well after sunset .

They all came back empty handed , as expected by then . Zero was beginning to lose hope even if he didn't want to admit it .

He took a deep breath and rubbed a hand over his mouth , not knowing what to say anymore .

It couldn't be helped .. They would have to go back to the inn and resume their search the following day . While it's true they did not exert much physical effort , their emotional and mental state must have gotten drained with despair .

Misao stood by him , wearing a frown and disappointment for an expression , Ryosuke had to be the only one composed enough among them all but Zero highly suspected that being a mask hiding how he truly felt .

And tomoya .. well .. Zero would rather not look at his face long enough to tell . Sadly , even if he doesn't , he could read his aura .

All combined did nothing to make the silverette feel any better . In fact , he was starting to lose hope for real .

" Hey . This means nothing . We'll still be looking for them tomorrow . At least we didn't stumble upon a dead body or something . " Surprisingly , It's Ryosuke saying that instead of Zero himself . Misao looked up and nodded at him , as if she'd been waiting for any sort of positivity to get her energy back again . Tomoya said nothing in response while Zero found himself questioning the words he'd just heard .

Does it really mean nothing ?

His eyes go wide before he knows it and a familiar shock settles in his mind . His body moves on its own and jolts backwards , head shooting up and gaze centers on a shadow looming at them from a tree , shadows to be precise .

It takes him a split second to realize what they are . Level Es .

Next to him , Misao gasps and takes on a fighting posture , readying her weapon . the other two mirror her actions in the speed of light and before any of them can realize anything , one of the most brutal vampires they have ever encountered engage with them in a close combat fight that shouldn't have felt that dangerous for how capable hunters of their caliber .

Zero kept on firing shots from bloody rose and sometimes retreating a few steps just in case but he soon noticed something a little bit suspicious that he ignored in favor of giving Ryosuke a helping hand with a level E he hadn't been aware , was behind him , as it seemed , which in itself screamed suspicious . How could he not detect it ?

They had been outnumbered and confused

on top of it . Where the hell did those Es come from ? There were no signs of them until they made an appearance . No matter what , a vampire's aura would never escape the kind of senses designed to detect them in the first place. How could a level E's aura go by unnoticed by four skilled hunters ! It simply couldn't be a coincidence that none of them felt the slightest threat close to them until it was too late .

Of course , they didn't get to think about any of that until they managed to finish off their enemies and rushed back to the inn , seeking refuge in a solid structure and wanting to make sure the owner had not been sucked dry yet .

Things were definitely not looking up , that much they could tell . In fact , they now had more reasons to believe Kaito might really be dead . They barely came out of that fight alive which still made no sense at all . Level Es weren't supposed to be that strong or well coordinated or .. that much of formidable opponent , especially if they had to go up against senior hunters .

The hell was happening ?

Nobody had a plausible answer except for the agreed on fact that such were not the Level Es they dealt with most of their lives . Those creatures were something else , new and improved , an evolution of sorts . Which could be anything but good news to them as individuals , the association , and the human world altogether .

Zero could bet his life there was more to come . A crippling fear bellowed at him in the back of his mind , repeating the same words without tire .

For some reason , he could already tell everything was going to tumble on his head so soon and he didn't like it one bit because he knew there would be nothing he could do about it . He just knew it .

 _Didn't you notice ?_

 _They never touched you_.

His eyes widened when he finally recognized the voice speaking to him for days now , the realization freezing him in place .

 _Onii-san_ .

Ichiru ?

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 **A/N**

2220 words ( only because I decided to delay the third day of the search for the next chapter ) why delay ? well , because If had not done that , I would have procrastinated and not written the last scene and wouldn't have updated at all or maybe in a decade lol . I'm being serious actually .

Any ways .. I'm not proud of the long break I might and might have not taken deliberately . I don't feel thrilled at how long it took me to get this out especially since I'm one to update frequently . But well , as they say , shit happens . I hope you guys are still here and interested in this despite everything ..

And I hope this looks decent in your eyes . I feel intimidated writing this again , or writing in general . But I could give myself a pat on the shoulder for the simple fact I sat down and finished this chapter instead of letting it rot . though technically it wouldn't rot since I barely started working on it around may 16 through 23 and 27 then resumed it on june 5 , 15 , and 20 .

In any case , I hope this is a step towards me concluding my fics because I don't like leaving behind work unfinished .

Hopefully .

That's all for now .

Xoxo Zerovk

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	13. Chapter 13

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Silence painted the atmosphere , with no sign of the morning to be found despite it being so , thanks to the heavy curtains in his grand chamber .

Kaname had woken up early , alone in his bed , with nothing but the dark and his thoughts for company .

It's been three days since he'd met that mysterious child .

It has also been three days since yuki started giving him the silent treatment , her way of making it clear she didn't like him keeping her in the dark . She'd wanted him to disclose where he'd gone to with Seiren back then . But that was not something he felt the need to trouble her with , simple as that . He didn't want to add to her worries . Aido and Souen's situation was already enough , even if they hadn't done anything Level E-like lately . It could just be the calm before the storm .

Kaname reclined back on the chair , a deep sigh leaving his lips at the thought .

Now that he thinks of it , hasn't it also been three days since Kiryuu went on a mission ?

Well , not like he cared , except for the fact it saved him the trouble of dealing with Kiryuu -

such a hassle if he was being honest - .

Back to the point though ..

While it was good that nothing suspicious has happened again concerning Aido and Souen , Kaname couldn't bring himself to rest at ease just then . There was no guarantee they wouldn't lash out once more and as much as he hated to admit it , Kiryuu proved to be the only one capable of restraining them , for some inexplicable reason . Damn ! The idea of needing the hunter's presence scalded his throat more than anything else , especially in light of the recent events , the forced change , namely , the bond .

Truth be told , Kaname wasn't in the mood to have an encounter with Kiryuu any time any soon , for many reasons . Unfortunately though , Kiryuu's absence didn't stop a certain topic from imposing itself .

The issue of that ridiculous blood bond hadn't left Kaname's mind , on the contrary . It kept emerging in his thoughts and haunting them , along with the other two issues .

Someone out there was clearly messing with him , just like Takuma had warned him the day before . It had come as a surprise for Kaname when the blonde noble reverted back to his loyal self , explaining how it felt as though he'd been manipulated to mourn over Sara and blindly take her side .

That piece of information had not been reassuring at all , especially since there was no telling if it could happen again . It seemed like someone wanted Kaname alone on a battlefield , with no one to fight by his side . After all , if Takuma could be manipulated that way , it could only mean one thing .. the person behind this might have what it takes to do worse .

Seems like wherever he looked , dilemmas and riddles followed .

Another sigh escaped his lips as he leaned forward and rubbed his forehead . It's definitely not a good time for him .

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Misao pursed her lips , a frown taking over her features and a sense of panic rising in her gut .

" Please tell me I'm not the only one absolutely sure there was a lake here , not a cave . " She spoke up generally , addressing the other three while roaming her eyes all over the said place .

They all stood in a circle , inspecting a cave that wasn't there before . It literally came out of nowhere .

Zero blinked , expecting to see the sparkling surface of water that he'd walked by the last two days , but in vain . There was no logical explanation here. A lake had magically disappeared and instead of it , a cave greeted their sight .

It wouldn't have been a big deal if he was the only person thinking so . He wasn't . Misao , tomoya , and Ryunosuke were just as bewildered as he was .

Could it have been an illusion ? If so , how did they miss it ? How come not even one of them noticed something fishy about it ?

What made everything exponentially worse was the faint aura they could sense from within the cave . It wasn't clear but a part of it felt oddly familiar and they couldn't say for sure if that was a good or bad thing . There was only one way to find out .

Time passed by , birds chirped above , and a gust of wind decorated the forest every once in a while . The cave did not vanish like they'd expected it to . No sign of danger existed so far . Well , it was no use prolonging the inevitable , right ?

Dreading what he was going to find inside , Zero took in a deep breath and , as the leader , he gave a command .

" I'm going in first . "

Misao and Ryunosuke nodded while Tomoya did nothing . He didn't even say a word to infuriate Zero , mind too puzzled to think of sarcasm . Perhaps , that was the only good thing about this unexpected turn of events .

They watched as Zero cautiously made his way inside , violet orbs scanning every inch it could reach until something caught his attention , a sound he couldn't recognize at first but later on identified as wheezing .

Another step was all it took to find the source .

His eyes widened and before he knew it , his body had pulled itself down to examine the quivering form on the ground .

His tense muscle had begun to relax with relief , having confirmed who the aura belonged to .

Zero didn't remember the last time he felt that happy . He'd nearly lost hope the day before !

But that moment of joy didn't last for long , bound to be short lived , as he should have expected .

Ryunosuke could only widen his eyes when Zero got shoved in his direction with so much force it almost made him lose balance . Zero himself wasn't faring much better as he struggled to comprehend what had just happened , too confused to support his own weight and instead , relying on Ryunosuke to help up .

" You ! It's all because of you ! " Kaito's expression spoke volumes as he shook his head and pointed at Zero hysterically , his reaction shocking them into silence .

" Kaito ? What are you talking about ?! It's me . " Zero snapped back , beginning to lose his temper . Kaito's condition reminded him of a wounded animal that had gone through so much torture to tell apart a friend from a foe . Maybe he needed a gentle push , anything to reassure him everything was going to be okay and that he was safe .

With that intention in mind , Zero made the mistake of approaching Kaito once more .

" Stay away , you monster ! You are not the same ! A traitor is no friend of mine . " the words had been said with so much conviction Zero almost believed them .

But he knew he'd done nothing to be called any of that , especially not by Kaito . Someone must have messed with his mind.

Zero could only curse in response . His blood boiled , burned in rage at the nonsense spouted at him . " The fuck do you mean ? "

His chest heaved up and down violently , as if hit by an earthquake .

Nothing happened at first , save for the intense eye-contact and suspense coating the air . But as soon as Kaito opened his mouth again , everything changed .

" You killed them all ! You and your Level Es ."

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Classes were coming to an end when Kaname sensed it , Kiryuu's aura approaching the academy . The hunter didn't seem to be in the best of moods , not that he ever was . It didn't come as a surprise . Kiryuu had always been a grumpy kid . But it didn't stop there . Kaname could feel an awful lot of anger emanating from him . Rage . Confusion . A pain so thick it could darken the sky and make it pour . It was raining , in a different sense .

He must have been too busy analysing Kiryuu's mood to notice the teacher's signature " Class dismissed "

It was only because of Takuma calling him that he realized everyone was waiting for him to leave first .

He wasn't particularly pleased at that . After all , he didn't have time to spare on trivial issues , much less on Kiryuu . In any case , it's nothing he couldn't remedy .

The bond must be fueling his curiosity and channelling his thoughts in that direction . There must be a way to resist it . And if not , he'd just have to make one .

Determined , he walked ahead , leaving the main building , with the rest of the night class peacefully following behind while Yuki walked next to him .

Nothing out of the ordinary took place until a scent of blood wafted in the air all of a sudden .

Kaname stopped short and turned around , watching as everybody else took a step back , terrified .

" Oh God.. "

He heard Yuki whisper and couldn't help mentally agreeing .

" I order you to stop this madness ! " She stepped forward and yelled in a commanding tone . She'd tried it before and it didn't work .

Their supposedly compelling nature as purebloods proved useless back then but she did it again , probably expecting a different outcome

. An error on her part .

Her actions had only made it worse . Ruka tore her fangs away from Kain's neck while Hanabusa did the same with Rima .

But the damage had already been done by then . Whatever poison those two had in their system was now running in Kain and Rima's too . Their eyes looked lifeless , empty , a sign of possession .

Kaname's expression shifted into irritation and his aura turned darker as he tightened his fist . Things weren't looking up .

Yuki's command made Ruka and Hanabusa drop to the ground and hold their heads while screaming in sheer agony , trying to obey her but for some reason failing to .

In other words , she was just putting them in unnecessary pain .

Realizing that , Yuki shook her head in a mixture of horror and disbelief .

Little could be done to control the situation now .

" Takuma , Senri , lead the others back to the dorm immediately . " Kaname spoke up in a tone that he rarely used , one that overflowed with authority .

It took Senri longer than usual to do as told . Kaname could understand why but now was not the time to freeze in shock .

" Now ! " He'd exclaimed , emphasising his words this time around , his sharp tone startling the nobles into moving .

In a matter of minutes , only Kaname and Yuki remained along with Ruka , Hanabusa , Rima , and Kain .

It happened , what Kaname had feared .

Another episode .

What an odd timing though . Everything was going just fine when Kiryuu was away and now that he's back , the exact opposite occurs .

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A/n :

2047 words

Updated 9 sept , 2018 .

I'm sorry my updates are no longer frequent but I barely get time for myself the past few months . Sometimes I get too busy to even turn my phone's wifi on .

Any how , I hope you enjoyed this chapter . Thank you for reading , sweeties .

I would love to know your thoughts about this . Let me know what you expect or guess would happen next. I do need ideas to fuel my inspiration .

Xoxo zero vk .

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	14. Chapter 14

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The sight before his eyes only had two explanations , no third to them , either Kiryuu was truly the one behind it all or someone wanted to make it look that way . Kaname found himself leaning towards the latter , not only was it more believable but it also had a better ring to it . The pureblood's ego being responsible for that . He found it hard to believe that an ex-human , his pawn , had what it takes to cause that , whatever it was .

Kiryuu was full of surprises , yes . but there was no way he possessed a power to control nobles and have them behave however he liked , to the point of defying purebloods , unless the world was coming to an end , that is .

Unfortunately , it didn't look like the mystery of that virus was going to be figured out any time any soon unless he confronted Kiryuu about it , something he'd preferred delaying for as long as he possibly could .

But for now , something had to be done before the infected nobles woke up .

It's true they no longer obey his commands but that didn't necessarily mean his powers won't work on them .

He needed a spell powerful enough to make them pass out for a few hours .

Yuki watched as Kaname whispered a collection of words , performing a spell of sorts .

In a matter of seconds , a blue circle faintly appeared around the nobles and glowed for a while until the light slowly died out , taking the nobles' consciousness with it .

Save for the sound of heavy breathing , silence filled the air before Kaname broke it .

" Seiren . Get the car , put them in it , and drive to the old building . Keep them locked in there , preferably in separate rooms . I'll have Takuma and Senri help you keep an eye on them . Report to me as soon as you are done . "

" Right away , Kaname-sama . "

She wasted no time doing as told , taking her leave immediately .

" It's time we got back to the dorm , Yuki . I'm afraid we might have to send the rest of the night class home before the situation gets worse . "

Yuki's eyebrows knitted even more at that , if that was possible . She'd gone through too many traumas to count , seen wars break out and people dying .. but .. She'd never gotten used to it and probably never will .

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Meanwhile , Takuma and Senri had just finished convincing everyone to stay in their rooms until the dorm leader came back . It wasn't easy but they managed .

The vice president was doing a good job hiding his anxiety but the same couldn't be said for Senri .

Takuma had never seen him so petrified before .

It didn't help when Senri held his head all of a sudden and squeezed his eyes shut , as if in pain , making Takuma even more worried , rushing to his side in the speed of light .

" What happened ? You okay ? "

In response , Senri opened his eyes and widened them , but he wasn't looking at the other noble .

" Senri ! Do you hear me ?! " Takuma insisted , now shaking Senri's shoulders for emphasis .

It worked , thankfully.

Ice blue finally met emerald .

" I.. " He started , unsure , not knowing how to form words and where to start .

" I have been getting those.. Visions ? Of a little boy . He just said something along the lines of we finally meet at last . "

Senri looked at his friend for answers , confusion and panic in his eyes along with desperation .

Takuma though , having no answers , just stood there , speechless and puzzled beyond belief .

The hell was going on ?

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In the confines of his room stayed one Zero Kiryuu , seated on bed , head in hands , looking like death itself , as if the weight of the world rested on his shoulders , and in a way that wasn't far from the truth , was it ?

It's been quite some time since he started relying on revenge , treating it as fuel , one strong enough to help him survive another day but he soon realized it was more of a burden , so heavy it left him drained instead of motivated .

Everything in him had long surrendered , expired , finally giving up and reaching a point where he understood what it meant to be tired , thoroughly , of everything .

It never rains , it pours indeed . on one hand , Kaito blamed him for the deaths of his comrades , firm in his accusation , so sure of what his eyes had seen despite Zero's constant attempts of defending himself and oh it did hurt . Perhaps stung was a better word .

It seemed like he was getting blamed for anything and everything as of late .

Although he didn't care what the night class thought of it , he didn't enjoy being blamed for whatever was going on with them .

A bitter scoff left his mouth at that .

As if what he saw in Shirabuki's memories wasn't bad enough as it is .

Too engrossed in his thoughts , he almost missed the presence making itself known in his room .

" Kaname-sama wishes to see you . " As if on cue , Seiren relayed in a flat tone , expecting immediate obedience despite knowing otherwise would ensue .

" Wish ? " Zero couldn't help finding the term funny , hilarious even , especially because he wasn't in the mood to play games with Kuran just yet .

" Tell him he's going to see my pretty little face When I feel like it . There's no need to rush . "

No matter how petulant , sarcasm made him feel so much better .

He'd just insulted the mighty pureblood king in the presence of his most loyal follower .

To her credit though , Seiren gave no reaction to that and just stared at him for a moment until she vanished , though not before confusing him with how much emotion she let show in that final look .

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We have so much in common , Kiryuu .. We've both lost our twins . We've both been turned .. But a major difference exists . I had a say in it . Seiren thought to herself as she headed back to the moon dorm , recalling that day her twin got sucked dry till she died and Seiren herself was on the verge of death . Kaname looked very guilty when he found them . They were supposed to escape , like he'd planned for them . Alas , it never happened . Kaname had given her a choice back then , a new life and a new name .

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It was nearing midnight when a pleasant surprise presented itself to Kaname .

" You ' feeling like it ' came sooner than expected . " he spoke in his ever so calm tone , the barest hint of smug victory showing on his expression . The silverette wouldn't have noticed it if he didn't know the pureblood so well , unfortunately for him .

Still , Zero curbed his agitation and said nothing in response , for he wasn't there to talk .

Never breaking eye contact , he made his way further in the grand chamber until he stood by the bed and glared at Kuran .

" At a time , my actions now would have repulsed me beyond limits . I would have never thought of doing this , not out of mercy but integrity and being above such repugnant schemes only the likes of you could resort to . But everything has changed now , I'm no longer the same righteous man I once was , and for that , I blame you , for that I will have you pay dearly , Kuran . " his voice dripped with malice , blinding rage finally consuming him to the core , darkness taking over his heart and soul , here to stay , all because of the very monster sitting in front of his eyes .

And yet Kuran's countenance had been ridiculously nonchalant . That did not please Zero at all . It was insulting and degrading and he hated it .

The pureblood's behaviour seemed to say ' Do whatever you want but make it fast , I don't have that much time to spare on your petty game of revenge , boy. '

Incensed , Zero darted forward , squeezing the column of Kuran's neck between his hands , a low growl escaping his mouth as he gave a death glare that Kaname gladly returned .

The longer they glared at each other the more Kaname looked bored with the turn of events , which prompted him to finally speak .

" I'm beginning to think you just want to have an excuse to touch me . " It could have been a tempting invitation if it weren't for the expression Kaname wore while saying it . Dry humor wasn't his style but he couldn't resist provoking Kiryuu . force of habit , he supposed .

The words being unexpected , Zero needed a second or two to find a perfect comeback .

" You wish . " he gave his words no more life than Kuran did , expression straight and betraying nothing . Being so close to Kuran was already enough to spoil his mood and the fact he wasn't being taken seriously didn't help . On the contrary , it made him want to break something , or in his case , someone . Fortunately , he knew exactly how to do that .

With renewed confidence , Zero straightened up , lifting his face away from Kuran's , passing him a ghost of a smile before getting straight into his favorite part .

" I'm perfectly capable of restraining you , if I so wished . but if I did that , you'd have an excuse to tell yourself later on , you'd think you couldn't help it , that despite how much you loathe to admit it , there was nothing you could do about it . . I don't want you to have something to alleviate the burning shame you would -without doubt- feel later on . Instead , I want you to be aware you had a say in it , you had a choice , you could have stopped me but ironically and at the same time , you couldn't . That would be irrevocably humiliating , right ? "

Now that seemed to be working , making some gears move inside the pureblood's head . His eyes gave Zero exactly what he wanted to see , attention .

But it didn't stay there for long . Kaname could only snort at that , a weak smile etched on his face as he shook his head and returned the favor with a retort of his own .

" You are trying so hard to prove you are dark enough to actively seek out revenge , to destroy someone . But I find it funny , the simple fact you aren't . You are trying to become someone you aren't and will never be . It's not a button you press . You can't just become the devil by proclaiming it .  
You don't have what it takes to seek revenge , Kiryuu . You are not dark enough .

Yes , you can hold a grudge . Yes , you can hate me all you want in your head and possibly plan my death a million times a day , But you will always regret every moment of torture you turned into reality . "

Zero scowled . It took all his might to resist the urge to spit in the bastard's face . It didn't matter though because he knew how to get the same effect using words .

" I'd say rot in hell but even that garners my sympathy . No place , no matter how dark , deserves to be tainted by the likes of you , Kuran . "

His grip tightened , nails digging in the pureblood's flesh , drawing droplets of blood in the process .

It only evoked a smile from Kaname .

" Such a strong reaction .

Did I perhaps enrage you with my words ? Because it's the truth you cannot accept ? " Everything in him and the way he said it frustrated Zero beyond limit .

He lunged forward , choking Kuran even more , if that was possible .

" You must have a death wish . you think I don't understand ? You think I don't know why you are doing this ? Well , you are gravely mistaken . I know you are doing it on purpose , to rile me up , to make me snap at you , to force a violent reaction out of me , thinking that by doing so you would be relieving yourself of this guilt wrapped like a sharp goddamn chain around your neck . you actually want me to hurt you . Sorry to disappoint you , Kuran . I'm not merciful enough to do that . "

Allowing Kiryuu to do whatever he wanted to drive away the guilt residing in **his** heart had really crossed Kaname's mind before . However , that didn't mean he was perfectly okay with it .. And even if he was , Kiryuu knowing about it was not part of the plan .

" I'm not going to force myself on you . Ask me why . "

Somewhere down the line , Zero's fingers turned from scratching to caressing , the stark contrast lost on the distracted pureblood .

Kaname Purposely chose not to say a word in response , not even a hum indicating he'd heard the question directed at him , none-too-gently .

He was not just about to scurry his way , eagerly giving a reply , as if out of fear . Few ideas were capable of making him feel the term "fear" , or at least anything remotely close to it , and kiryuu zero was not in the list of those . He never will .

Kaname , despite the whole unfortunate arrangement , was not going to magically submit to the ex human before him , much less compromise his superiority , treating the hunter as an equal .

And yet .. He knew that kiryuu could and would use his influence as a bondmate to wreak havoc on every second of peace the brunette could be having , to do more harm than good .

He had , after all , no qualms doing so . That had been the point of the stupid bond to begin with , taking revenge .

A part of him couldn't help but wonder if feigning submission would not be such a bad idea . After all , the faster he got this over with , the better . And yet another part of him harshly , avidly , opposed .

There was no way he would be submitting to kiryuu , not even to fool him , not even as an act . That's not gonna happen , ever . And if kiryuu wanted to wait for such thing to happen , he was going to wait for a very long time , and in vain .

" ASK ! "

Kaname got startled at that , though he would never admit it .

In his presence , people knew their limits , knew better .

He was not used to such barbarian attitude .

Kiryuu's voice pulled him , quite rudely if he might add , out of his daze .

The insolent brat took it for granted .

Just because Kaname was always so calm did not mean he was incapable of raising his voice . He did know how to . Kiryuu just never had the misfortune of witnessing it . Not anymore though .

" WHAT ?! " He'd shouted back and found himself realising , a little bit too late , that he'd just walked straight into the trap kiryuu had so cunningly set for him .

It was never his intention to give the pathetic ex human the answer he must have wanted so badly to hear . Alas , he ended up doing just that .

The yell was supposed to be a compressed version of ' What the hell do you think you are doing ?'

But Kiryuu didn't seem to care about that . Instead , he looked pleased with himself and suddenly leaned close to Kaname's ears before whispering

" which would be more shameful , having your pawn rape you or genuinely enjoying it ? I want you to enjoy this , Kuran . "

The snort that followed had a cutting edge to it , as if Kuran challenged him .

And oh was it an error on his part .

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A/N :

Oh snap ! S**t just got real . Do you think Zero claimed Kaname or was he just showing him a sample of what he was going to do later on ?

Updated 2 December , 2018 .

I hope you guys enjoyed this update and the story in general . Thank you all for supporting me , I truly appreciate it . xoxo

I forgot to mention in the last chapter that I have a drawing of Misao and Tomoya ( the hunters of Zero's team ) in my deviantart account ( artbynoni ) . Feel free to check them out ~ I also have other vk fanarts ( some of them kaze , some individual )

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In the next chapter :

" I said this before but I'm going to say it again , to refresh your memory . I'm special . After all , none of this would have happened if I weren't - you wouldn't have chosen me that gloomy night you set shizuka free - . I have learned to hate myself for that .. Being useful and special .. "

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